Stranger In The Night
by MysticStarfall
Summary: Bella finally moves on from the Cullen's, it's 5 years later and she's on a road trip. When trouble strikes, an unexpected person saves her life; what happens next? Rated T for language and slight graphic descriptions.
1. First Meeting

**AN: This is my first time ever publishing a fic, would like some helpful criticism and feedback if possible. I do not own Twilight or its characters, just messing around with them seeing what I can make them do.**

Well, I'm officially over Edward. It's been 5 years since he left me in the woods behind my house. I laid there on the ground for roughly 12 hours before Sam Uley found me, and carried me back to Charlie's. I was catatonic for four months before I finally 'woke' up, and realized that Edward wasn't the guy for me any longer, and that the love I held for him was purely infatuation.

I had completed college as well in the last five years, getting a degree in English Literature. I had even attended Dartmouth College, just as Edward wanted me to. When I first went there, I had hopes that Alice would see my decision and would come see me, but she never did, so I resigned myself to being alone, which was alright with me by that point.

So here I am, traveling around the United States in a brand new, Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab pickup truck. Its cherry red and drives like a dream. Currently, I'm in northern Texas, just sight-seeing. I'm on a back, country road, and it's dark when the truck starts acting up. It started making a funny noise under the hood, and being me, I know absolutely nothing about engines. I pulled out my cell phone, hoping to call someone for help, but it apparently doesn't have service out there. I bang my hands on the steering wheel, angry at myself for not making sure the truck was kept tuned up.

Suddenly a noise came off from the right, and I had started thinking that Victoria finally found me again, but I didn't feel any fear. I rolled the windows up in the truck, even though it wouldn't keep a deranged, psychotic vampire out. I sighed, resigned to my fate of being killed in some backwoods country place where no one would ever know where I was.

The next thing I knew, someone was knocking on my passenger window and I screamed, the voice that followed wasn't female, it was a man with a deep southern accent, so I relaxed slightly. "Ma'am, ya really shouldn't be parked here on ta side of the road when it's dark. It's not safe." The stranger spoke through the window.

"I'm stranded. My cell phone doesn't have any service, and something's wrong with my truck." I looked over, even though I couldn't see him with it being so dark out.

"Would ya like me ta take a look at it for ya? See if I can get ya back up and runnin'." He asked politely.

"If it's not too much trouble, I'd greatly appreciate it, sir." I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking I was going to get out of here soon.

"Alright, pop ta hood for me Darlin'." I could tell he had a smile on his face just by his voice.

I popped the hood, staying still in my seat while he checked the engine out. The next thing I knew, my back window was shattered and I was being pulled out by my hair, screaming. I saw fiery-red hair. Victoria. I knew screaming for help would be fruitless, so I kept quiet. She was running through the woods, when all of a sudden a ferocious roar sounded through the air. I gasped when I realized that it was my Southern Gentlemen who tried to help me with my truck.

I was suddenly dropped onto the forest floor, my body aching from being dragged for an unknown amount of time. I felt the blackness slowly creeping into my vision, but I willed myself to stay awake so I could thank my rescuer, when suddenly a hand was on my arm, making me scream in fear.

"Darlin', it's alright, she won't hurt ya anymore tonight, but I need ta get ya outta here. I had ya truck ready ta be started. Are ya hurt?" he asked softly. It was then that I knew what he was, and was eternally grateful for him being there then.

"No, just sore from her dragging me. I don't think I could put weight on my right foot though, it feels as if it's numb, which usually tells me that it is badly sprained or broken." I felt him gently slide his arms underneath me, picking me up bridal style and running back to my truck. He opened the passenger side door and set me inside softly, running back to the driver side. He started the truck and we took off flying away from Victoria.

"Thank you, sir, for saving my life, and getting my truck fixed." I spoke softly, with a sigh.

"It's alright ma'am. My name is Peter Whitlock, and who might ya be, Darlin'?" he asked gently, probably afraid that I'll go into shock or something from being kidnapped by a vampire.

"My names Isabella, but please call me Bella. You don't have to tread lightly around me Peter, I know what you are, and I'm not scared. I've met your kind before." I absentmindedly rubbed the scar on my right wrist and sighed, thinking of everything I'd lost that dreadful night 5 years ago.

"Well, Miss Bella, may I inquire as ta how you know of my nature? And better yet, why was that red-head after ya?" He was pulling into a driveway that put the Cullen's driveway to shame.

"I used to date one of your kind, was met with three nomads, one was a tracker and thought of me as a snack. My boyfriend and his family protected me. My boyfriend's brother and sister took me to Phoenix to try and escape the tracker, but he figured it out and followed us. He made me think he had my mother, and told me to come alone to my old dance studio. I stupidly did as he asked, evading the brother and sister in the airport and went in search of the tracker. He broke my leg, broke some ribs, cracked my skull and even bit me." I was shaking by this point, tears streaming down my face. Peter unbuckled me, and pulled me into his lap, softly rubbing my back and telling me that everything would be alright. I decided to try and continue my story now, I figured he saved my life; he had a right to know what was going on and how I knew what he was. "My boyfriend sucked out the venom before I could be changed. A few months later, the family threw me a birthday party, which I asked them not to, and I got a stupid paper cut like the pathetic human I am." I heard Peter growl softly, which perplexed me, since he didn't really know me, but I ignored it. "And one of the family members lunged at me." I couldn't tell him who did it, he might know who Jasper was and might not want me around. I clung to his shirt, my tears coming hard now. "My boyfriend broke up with me three days later, leaving me lost in the woods behind my house. It's been five years that the red-headed, deranged psycho bitch has been after me. I thought I evaded her, but apparently not." As I finished speaking, tears were streaming down my face. It was then that I took a good long look at his house, and gasped softly at the wondrous beauty of it. It was a house made out of wood, like a very large wooden cabin would be made out of, with a wrap-around porch.

"We're here Miss Bella. I'll carry ya inside and check ya foot for ya." Peter stated as he placed me back into my seat and getting out of the truck, he came around to my side before I could even blink. I muttered _'stupid vampire speed'_ which caused Peter to chuckle softly.

He opened my door, picking me back up bridal style and walked towards the door. Once inside, I was in complete awe of his house. It had an old, rustic vibe to it with dark, hardwood floors, and the furniture looked to be made by hand of a soft looking wood. It was some place I could easily see myself living.

"Wow, it's beautiful!" Was all I managed as I wiped my face as he sat me on the sofa, which was a cream color to contrast wonderfully with the dark wood walls.

"Thanks." He said, smiling. "Now, let's check that foot out, shall we?" I nodded softly as he kneeled down and began slowly taking my shoe off. I winced in pain as it started swelling as soon as the pressure of the shoe was gone. I had to lean back on the couch, balling my fists up to keep from screaming or hitting him because of the pain.

His hands gently pressed in certain places, causing me to bite my lip from screaming out in pain, but he knew it was hurting me because he grimaced any time he touched.

"It's broken Darlin'. Will ya be alright here while I run ta tha store ta get supplies ta fix it and get other supplies for ya?" He asked, looking at me finally. I saw his gorgeous red eyes, which would usually scare me, but on him, they made me feel quite as ease. I sighed softly.

"You don't have to worry about it. I'll just drive left footed until I can find a hospital, or something." Before I even finished my sentence, he growled lowly at me and shook his head.

"Oh I don't think so Miss Bella. Ya are still in danger with that red-headed bitch after ya, ya are injured, and look ta be worn slap out, and ya aren't goin' anywhere. Now, I will be back in about an hour, just stretch out here, prop ya foot up, and watch some TV or somethin' till I get back. And for the love of God, do NOT try and walk on it! She wouldn't have followed us so ya have nothin' ta worry about, Suga'." He spoke with such authority that it sent chills down my spine, and I blushed and nodded, watching him walk out the door. I leaned back on the couch, my foot propped up on pillows that he placed there and closed my eyes, relaxing for the first time in 5 years.

**AN: Tell me what you think please**


	2. First Meeting PPOV

**Peter POV**

I was comin' through the woods after huntin' a few towns over when I saw a near brand new truck parked on the side of the road. A woman 'bout 22-23 was sittin' in the front seat, bangin' her hands against the steerin' wheel. She apparently knew I was there, how I have no earthly idea, cause I saw her stiffen and start lookin' around. When I knocked on her window, she screamed until she heard me speak.

"Ma'am, ya really shouldn't be parked here on the side of the road when it's dark. It's not safe." She stopped screamin' immediately, lettin' out a shaky breath before speakin'.

"I'm stranded. My cell phone doesn't have service, and something's wrong with my truck." She sounded like she was a ways away from home with her accent, so I figured I'd give her a hand, and get her on her way.

"Would ya like me to take a look at it for ya? See if I can get ya back up and runnin'." I offered so she would be able to get away before trouble finds her, she seems like she's prone to findin' danger anywhere she goes. She breathed out a sigh of relief, and nodded.

"If it's not too much trouble, I'd greatly appreciate it, sir." I scoffed internally to her callin' me sir, if she only knew how old I really was she'd probably freak out. I sighed as I walked towards the front of her truck, askin' her to pop the hood. I was lookin' around when I noticed that the distributor cap was loose and causin' it to rattle, which would make the truck act funny. I tightened it up, and was gettin'' ready to shut the hood when I heard glass shatterin', and her screamin' fearfully. When she looked up at her attacker, I saw recognition flash across her face, which made me wonder how the woman knew of a vampire.

I gave chase, followin' the woman's scent into the forest and tackled the red-headed vampire, makin' her drop the woman on the ground. Before I was able to attack her further, she ran away, but I knew I couldn't chase her now that she'd dropped the woman. I ran back to her, placin' my hand on her arm, causin' her scream in fear again.

"Darlin', it's alright, she won't hurt you anymore tonight, but I need to get you out of here. I had your truck ready to be started. Are you hurt?" I didn't smell any blood, but that didn't mean somethin' was broken, or hurt internally, which made me fearful for this woman.

"No, I don't think so really, although I don't think I could put weight on my right foot though, it feels as if it's numb, which usually tells me that it is badly sprained or broken." The way she spoke of it either bein' a sprain or a break made me rethink my idea that she's prone to danger, now I'm thinkin' that she's a very accident prone person who lives in the face of danger daily.

I picked her up gently, runnin' back to her truck and placin' her in the passenger seat before goin' to get behind the wheel. Once I start the truck, I toke off flyin' out of there, hopin' beyond hell that the red-head doesn't follow us.

"Thank you, sir, for saving my life, and getting my truck fixed." She says softly, lookin' down into her lap.

"It's alright ma'am. My name is Peter Whitlock, and who might you be, Darlin'?" I myself speak softly, hopin' that she doesn't really know what I am, but somethin' tells me that it's not goin' to work out the way I want it to.

"My names Isabella, but please call me Bella. You don't have to tread lightly around me Peter, I know what you are, and I'm not scared. I've met your kind before." Well, shit. It's like she's read my mind there sort of. Guess I'll have to tread carefully on this subject, figure out how much she knows.

"Well, Miss Bella, may I inquire as to how you know of my nature? And better yet, why was that red-head after you?" I growled low in my chest, too low for her to hear, at someone comin' after this beauty.

"I used to date one of your kind, was met with three nomads, one was a tracker and thought of me as a snack. My boyfriend and his family protected me. My boyfriend's brother and sister took me to Phoenix to try and escape the tracker, but he figured it out and followed us. He made me think he had my mother, and told me to come alone to my old dance studio. I stupidly did as he asked, evading the brother and sister in the airport and went in search of the tracker. He broke my leg, broke some ribs, cracked my skull and even bit me." She was shakin' terribly by this point, tears streamin' down her face. I decided to unbuckle her, and pulled her into my lap, softly rubbin' her back and tellin' her that everythin' would be alright. My heart was breakin' for her already, and she wasn't even finished. Who would have ever thought that she'd get mixed up in the mystical world? "My boyfriend sucked out the venom before I could be changed. A few months later, the family threw me a birthday party, which I asked them not to, and I got a stupid paper cut like the pathetic human I am." I growled at that, there wasn't any way this tiny slip of a girl could ever be considered a pathetic human. She looked at me kinda funny, but kept on with her story. "And one of the family members lunged at me." It seemed like she was holdin' somethin' back, somethin' that made her extremely fearful, but I couldn't put my finger on it, and my 'knowledge' wasn't helpin' me any. Her tears were stronger now, and she was clingin' to my shirt like a life raft, afraid she was goin' to sink into the cold, dark abyss. "My boyfriend broke up with me three days later, leaving me lost in the woods behind my house. It's been five years that the red-headed, deranged psycho bitch has been after me. I thought I evaded her, but apparently not." Wait a minute, she got attacked by a vampire twice in her life, and lived? That's completely unheard of. And what's this about a birthday? I remember Jasper tellin' me that he lunged at Eddie's girlfriend on her birthday. Oh holy shit! This is Bella Swan! I can't let her know that I know who she is, lest she freaks out on me. I was so stuck in my own thoughts that I didn't realize she had slowly calmed down.

As gently as I possibly can, I carried her inside after tellin' her that we were finally at my home. She looks around in complete awe, takin' in every detail her human eyes can absorb. I place her on the couch and gently remove her shoe, hearin' her hiss and wince in pain as the swellin' appears. I press lightly, feelin' for any breaks and find two. Her pain is evident in her face as well has her posture.

"It's broken Darlin'. Will you be alright here while I run to the store to get supplies to fix it and get other supplies for you?" I ask, lookin' up into her deep, chocolate brown eyes, findin' myself gettin' lost. She's starin' back into my eyes, the red eyes of a murderer, but she doesn't look afraid, she looks like she's happy to look into the eyes of a murderer.

"You don't have to worry about it. I'll just drive left footed until I can find a hospital, or something." Is this woman crazy? Thinkin' I'm goin' to let her go drivin' off with a broken foot, and a crazy vampire after her? I growled at her, makin' her shut her mouth quickly.

"Oh I don't think so Miss Bella. You are still in danger with that red-headed bitch after you, you are injured, and look to be worn slap out, and you aren't goin' anywhere. Now, I will be back in about an hour, just stretch out here, prop your foot up, and watch some TV or somethin' till I get back. And for the love of God, do NOT try and walk on it!" I tell her, only to have her sigh at me and look away. I could still feel her nerves, like she was an empath, projectin' them at me. "She wouldn't have followed us so you have nothin' to worry about, Suga'." I move her to where she's layin' back on the couch, placin' a pillow under her foot and hand her the TV remote, not givin' her any room to argue further.

I head into town, goin' to the store and grabbin' all the supplies I'll need. My intuition kicks in then and tells me to get her some food and answer my phone.

"_**Hey fucker!"**_ my brother drawled out at me.

"_**What's up Jazz-man?" **_I asked, tryin' to sound as calm as possible.

"_**Oh nothin' much, just thought you'd be up for a visit?"**_ He asked hopefully. I was unsure as to what to say with Bella bein' in my house now. I sighed before answerin'.

"_**You can come down, but I gotta warn you. You aren't goin' to like who's at my house right now. Are you alone, so I can tell you without havin' anyone around? I know Pixie can't see me, so I'm not worried about her findin' out where I am." **_I growled slightly, thinkin' back to what she did to Jasper after he lunged at Bella on her birthday. How she told him it was his fault, and how she couldn't stand being a babysitter for a worthless monster any longer. When he finally told me he was away from the family, I told him.

"_**Are you sure it's her? Alice said that she died like three years ago or something."**_ I could hear the uncertainty in his voice, and it made me even angrier at that stupid family for doing this to the God of War.

"_**Yes Jazz, she told me her story, and it matches up with what you told me happened. It's her." **_I know I sounded exasperated, and I was, but I wasn't going to say or do anything else. I heard him sigh softly before speaking again.

"_**I'm on my way. Warn her though; I don't want her to fear me Peter. It wasn't my fault that I lunged. I wasn't even goin' for her. I was goin' after Edward."**_He sighed again, his guilt still takin' him over, even after five years.

"_**Will do brother, see ya later." **_I hung up the phone at that, not wantin' to talk anymore.

I got back to the house, and Bella was dozin' on the couch, the remote barely in her hand that was hangin' off the couch. I went and grabbed a rag and wet it with cold water, to try and reduce some swellin' before I wrapped her foot. She jerked and winced when the cold touched her skin.

"I'm sorry to wake you Darlin', but I need to try and reduce some swellin' before wrappin' it. Here's some Motrin to toke to help toke the edge off." I handed her a bottle of water and the bottle of pills. She cringed and sighed.

"Thank you so much Peter. You surely didn't have to do this, but I am eternally grateful for all your help tonight." She said, with a genuine smile on her face. She popped two pills and drank half the bottle of water.

I began wrappin' her foot in an ace bandage, feelin' her jerk slightly at the pain.

"I'm really sorry it's hurtin', but I'm no doctor and am tryin' to help as much as I can." I hated makin' her feel more pain. I have no idea where this is all comin' from, I'm feelin' very protective of this woman, been feelin' it since I saw her on the side of the road.

"It's alright Peter. I'm no stranger to pain, just never had a broken foot before, so it's a different type of pain." She rolled her eyes softly, mumblin' somethin' about bein' a pathetic, clumsy human, which caused me to growl softly at her again. Her eyes came to meet mine again, raisin' an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Sorry Darlin', but I do not think you are pathetic human, clumsy maybe, but there's absolutely nothin' wrong with that." I sighed softly, I knew I needed to tell her about Jasper, and his impendin' visit, I was just afraid of causin' her any more pain, so I just decided to bite the bullet and ask. "I need to ask you a question about this family of vampires you had associated with Suga', and I need you to be honest with me please." I looked at her, pleadin' with my eyes. She sighed and nodded.

"Was it the Cullen coven, Darlin'?" I saw her tense up and close her eyes, a few tears escapin' as she nodded. She took a few deep breaths before relaxin' and openin' her eyes again. I could still see that she had tears in her eyes, but she was tryin' to be strong and not show how hurt she was over what happened.

"I thought so, but I wasn't positive. I have news though, and you probably aren't goin' to like it, but I feel you need to know ahead of time." She quirked an eyebrow at me again, her tears all but vanishin' as she was givin' me a slight glare that made me want to cringe back in fear of this tiny slip of a woman.

"Jasper is on his way. He's my brother, my sire. He called while I was out and asked to visit. If I had told him no, he would have gotten suspicious and came anyways. I told him you were here. Bella, the Cullen's all thought you were dead, they thought you killed yourself by jumpin' off a cliff." She groaned and sighed, makin' me wonder what exactly happened. "Alice saw it in a vision and told the family. Jasper said she was feelin' positive emotions at the vision, which caused Edward to go to the Volturi." Tears started streamin' down her face again, and a heartbreakin' sob broke from her chest. I moved up towards where her head was layin', placin' a hand on her cheek, wipin' the tears off.

"Shh, Darlin', everythin's alright. Jasper has left the family, and is excited to see you. He's afraid that you'll be fearful of him though." I said softly, still with my hand on her cheek.

"I've never feared Jasper. He was acting on instincts, it wasn't his fault. It was mine; I am the stupid one that got the paper cut in a room full of animal drinking vampires. I know he wasn't coming after me though. He was going after Edward. Jasper's eyes never changed to black, they stayed gold, whereas Edward's changed black, and he stiffened like he was ready to turn and drain me." Another sob broke free of her tiny body, and I sat her up, sittin' down and pullin' her into my lap, wrappin' my arms around her, rubbin' her back again gently since it soothed her so well before, hopin' to get her to calm down some so we can talk about it some more.

"You have nothin' to fear any longer Bella, I will protect you with my own life, and I know Jasper would as well." I told her, hopin' she heard the sincerity in my voice. I pulled her closer to me, still unsure as to why I feel so protective of her.

"No! You can't! She'll hurt you! You can't leave me Peter! Please don't!" She was sobbin' harder now, hysterical at the thought of me gettin'' hurt and clingin' to my shirt yet again. "Please Peter; don't let her take you away from me too." She whispered into my chest barely loud enough for my vampire hearin'.

"My sweet Angel, she will never get close enough to hurt me, or take me away from you. I promise you that. I know how to handle her kind baby girl." God I wish Jasper would get here so he could calm her down; I'm not used to dealin' with hysterically sobbin' women.

"You have to promise me Peter. I've already lost too much. My mom, Phil, and Victoria's probably going to go after my Dad next, and no one is there to protect him except a bunch of teenage shape-shifting wolves who don't know their head from their ass!" She was still cryin', but the hysterical sobbin' had finally stopped.

"Wolves Angel?" I asked softly, rubbin' soothin' circles on her back.

"Yes, the tribe in La Push turn into giant wolves to protect human life. They kill your kind, but they had a treaty with the Cullen's since they only drank animal blood. They chased Victoria for months, but she kept evading them. Please Peter, don't leave me too." She clung tighter to me, so tight in fact, had I been human, she would have crushed me.

"I promise you Angel, I'm not leavin' you. She won't get to me." I whispered in her ear, kissin' her hair softly.

I heard the tell-tale signs of a vehicle comin' down my driveway, which told me it was Jasper, since he is the only other one that had the code to enter the security gate. I sat there, still holdin' Bella in my arms, with her clingin' tightly to me.

I heard him step onto the porch, and I whispered at vampire speed for him to announce his presence and enter slowly.

"Hey Peter, are you here brother?" He called out, loud enough for Bella to hear. She tensed up in my arms, her heartbeat goin' erratic, before she recognized it as Jasper and calmed down some.

"Yea, c'mon in Jasper." I called back, smilin' softly as Bella's tears subsided and she smiled softly.

"Jasper!" She hollered, launchin' herself at him, ignorin' the pain in her foot, as soon as he walked in the door. He stood there stunned for a moment before wrappin' his arms around her waist, holdin' her tight.

"Bella, God I'm so sorry…" she cut him off before he could finish.

"Jasper, I swear to god if you finish that sentence, I'll find a way to kick your sparkly ass!" She glared at him. "It wasn't your god damn fault; your eyes never changed colors, only Edward's did that night. I know you were trying to protect me, but he made it seem like you were attacking me. So enough with the apologizing god damnit!" He stood there, gappin' at her. Never before in my long, undead life have I see someone put the Major in their place, and she's a tiny human!

I busted out laughin', as did Bella at Jasper's stunned face. Bella snapped her fingers in his face a couple times. "Hey, Emo? You still with us?" She giggled. First time she's ever shown a happy emotion since she's been here.

"Uh, huh? Oh yea, I'm here." He smiled, pullin' her back in for a hug. "God it's great to see you Bella!" He kept her wrapped up in his arms for a while longer, both clingin' to each other like a starvin' fat-man to a buffet.**(No offense to anyone at all!)**

"Good to see you too Jasper. I've missed you so much!" She sighed into his chest softly, pullin' herself closer to him.

I sat there, watchin' them together and smiled. Still unsure as to why I'm so protective of her, but my protectiveness is gettin' stronger.

"Peter, my brother." He said, smilin' at me, still with his arms wrapped around Bella's waist, holdin' her off the floor.

I stood up and smiled at him. "Jazz-man. How are you?" I asked, walkin' up to him, givin' him a man-hug.

"Pretty good, doin' better now that I know Bella's alive." He smiled down at her.

We all walked over towards the couch, Bella sittin' between us both. She didn't want to let him go, probably afraid that he'll disappear if she lets go.

"Bella, can I ask why Alice saw you jumpin' off a cliff?" He asked her, breakin' the ten minute silence that had fallen on us and causin' her to flinch and look down into her lap.

"I wasn't trying to kill myself! God! I was cliff-diving, recreational fun! The La Push boys do it all the time, and Jacob was supposed to go with me, but Victoria was in the area again, and they all went off chasing her and left me alone." She leaned forward, placin' her head in her hands and sighin', I saw Jasper tense up, and I wasn't sure what that was about, but I intended to find out later when Bella went to bed. "I got tired of waiting and did it on my own. I will NEVER do that shit again though!" She giggled softly.

"Well she saw you jump, and kept watchin' but your future suddenly vanished." He said, softer this time.

"Yea, Alice can't see the wolves, which is why I now wear this." She held up her wrist, showin' a charm bracelet with a tiny wolf on it. "I had it blessed by the Elders of the tribe so she couldn't see me." She grinned at him.

"Well, hot damn Bella Swan got resourceful!" He laughed softly.

"You bet your sparkly ass I did Jazz." She smiled softly, "I figured that if the family left me, I wasn't going to let the family see what I was doing all the time. It wouldn't have been fair to me to have her watching me if I couldn't see her myself." She sighed softly, not even lookin' at him, "Sorry, but I actually always hated that annoying pixie-bitch." Jasper blinked at her, with a raised eyebrow.

She shrugged and giggled, "What, it's true. I hated how she always tried to dictate my life, telling me what to wear, where to go, and all that. I got sick of it. I wasn't the innocent little human that you all always thought me to be, I just played the part because of Edward."

"Yes, I'm beginnin' to notice. You never cussed back then for starters." He smirked. "I think I like this side of you though, better then the wimpy girl that was always with Edward."

"Oh I know you didn't just call me wimpy Jasper Whitlock!" She glared at him, causin' his eyes to widen slightly. "I wasn't the only one Alice dictated to! Who was it that was made to wear dress slacks and dress shirts and loafers? What the hell, you aren't that type of person. And judging by your current outfit, I'd say you realized that yourself as soon as psycho pixie was out of the picture. Although I bet she still tries to dress you doesn't she?" Bella smirked, crossin' her arms over her chest.

"Still as perceptive as always Miss Swan. And yes, she still tries to dress me. She got pissed at me one day when she went out and bought all new clothes for me, and I set them all on fire right in front of her." He laughed, causin' Bella to snort.

"I did the same with all the clothes she had bought me." She made to stand up, but her foot was botherin' her again. "Petey, anyway I could find a bed? I'm exhausted." She looked at me, with the most adorable pout.

"Sure thing Darlin'," I stood to pick her up and carry her bridal style to my bedroom, layin' her down gently. "Do you need anythin' else Angel?"

"I could really use my bag with my pajamas and some more Motrin please." She said softly, as if embarrassed to ask.

"Sure thing Darlin', I'll be right back." I walked back downstairs, seein' Jasper sittin' on the couch, starin' blankly at the wall, deep in thought after seein' Bella alive again after thinkin' she was dead for the last five years. I walked out to her truck and got her bag for her, grabbin' the Motrin as I walked back upstairs.

"Here ya go Angel." I handed her the stuff and let her do her thing and walked downstairs.


	3. History Lesson

**AN:** This chapter mentions rape, and goes decribes what happens, sorry it if offends people.

I own nothing!

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><p>Jasper's POV:<p>

After calling Peter, I started making my way to his house, still not believing that Bella was alive and actually at Peter's house. I knew we should have tracked that red-headed bitch, but Edward had always said no cause she wasn't a problem, and of course everyone else agreed with him and we left her alone.

Peter told me to make myself known, so as I don't scare Bella, but I'm pretty sure that she'll be afraid of me anyways after what I did on her birthday. I still could not get over the fact that Bella was in Texas, and with Peter of all people. When Alice saw her jump off the cliff and her future disappeared, we were all heartbroken. Then Edward had to go and provoke the Volturi and kill himself before Alice could get to him. He never truly loved Bella, he thought of her as a possession more than a mate and he loved the smell of her blood above all else.

When I pulled into Peter's house, I took a deep breath and I smelled her immediately, smiling internally. Peter told me again to make myself known at vampire speed.

"Hey Peter, you here brother?" I called out, loud enough for Bella to hear. I heard her heart beat pick up and felt her emotions. She was fearful at first, but relaxed when she heard it was my voice and not someone elses.

"Yea, c'mon in Jasper." He called back. When I walked in, I could tell Bella had been crying, by the smell of salt in the air, and it broke my heart. A woman like her shouldn't ever cry over anything. They shouldn't have their hearts broken, they should always be kept happy.

"Jasper!" She hollered and launched herself at me when she saw me come into the living room. I felt pain as she shot into my arms, but I was momentarily stunned that she'd hug me like this, so I forgot about why she was in pain. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her tightly to me, breathing in her scent and smiling softly.

"Bella, God I'm so sorry…" She pulled back, looking me in the eye and glared.

"Jasper, I swear to god, if you finish that sentence, I will find a way to kick your sparkly ass!" Her glare has gotten worse, making me flinch slightly, to where she didn't even see. But Peter did and was grinning from ear to ear with smugness in his emotions. "It wasn't your god damn fault; your eyes never changed colors, only Edward's did that night. I know you were trying to protect me, but he made it seem like you were attacking me. So enough with the apologizing god damnit!" I stood there gaping, never before hearing Bella Swan cuss or raise her voice, but she quickly put me in my place so I shut up.

I didn't know how long I stood there, just staring with my mouth hanging open.

"Hey, Emo? You still with us?" She giggled, calling me Emo. I could tell from her emotions that she was amused and excited to see me.

"Uh, huh? Oh yea, I'm here." I stuttered out, grabbing her again and hugging her tightly to me. "God it's great to see you Bella!" We were both clinging to each other, holding on for dear life it seemed. So much time had passed and we didn't want to let go.

"Good to see you too Jasper. I've missed you so much!" She sighed into my chest, and then pulled back, looking up into my eyes for a moment.

We talked about why she jumped off the cliff, and why Alice couldn't see her anymore, which made me laugh. Apparently both Bella and I had the same feelings for Alice and her dictating ways. Peter was still smiling softly at Bella, and I felt his protective emotions for her, which surprised me since Peter is a human drinker and has never once talked to a human really.

We talked for a while before Bella asked Peter to take her to the bed because she was exhausted, and I sat there, staring at the wall. Still trying to figure out how no one even went to check to make sure Bella was dead. Ever since the night of her birthday, I have basically been outcast from the family, Carlisle doesn't want me gone completely because he's afraid I'll fall off the 'Veggie-Wagon'! Such faith they all have in me, makes me sick to think that they perceive me as the weak-link, when I'm actually the strongest vampire that was ever in the coven.

I saw Peter run out to the truck and grab her bag and the pain pills, but I still didn't move. I sat there for the longest time, just sorting through all the things that have happened in the last five years. Alice leaving me, Edward getting the Volturi to kill him, Emmett and Rosalie not trusting me fully anymore, but still willing to be my family. Carlisle and Esme only wanting me around to keep an eye on me. I decided then and there that I wasn't ever going to visit them again unless I absolutely had to, they have no trust or faith in me, so I just won't put up with it anymore, stupid lying coven says one thing then does another. I must have been projecting some anger, because Peter looked at me and raised an eyebrow.

"Just thinking about the last five years, and how much has changed since her birthday party." I cringed, replaying what happened in my head again. "I've been thinking that maybe Alice knew what was going to happen, and kept it hidden from everyone. Then used the excuse that I couldn't control my bloodlust to leave me." I leaned forward, placing my head in my hands and sighed. "I wasn't even going after her blood, I was protecting her. When I smelled her blood, yes it smelled wonderful and I wanted it, but I would never have hurt her, she was too precious to the family. I was only trying to keep her from getting hurt." I whispered that last part, only to feel slight amusement come from Peter.

"Oh you say she was too precious, and didn't want her hurt?" I could feel some slight smugness coming from him, but I wasn't sure why he was feeling like that.

"Yes Peter, I've always cared more about Bella then I let anyone believe. I just don't understand why." He nodded, confusion radiating off him.

"What's got you confused brother?" I asked, my brow furrowed in question.

"Just that, you care a lot about her, more so then you've cared about anyone else right?" I nodded, unsure what he was talking about, so I waited. "Jazz, I don't know what it is about that little human girl sleepin' upstairs, but I care more about her than I ever have anyone else in my entire life. She's already wormed her way into my heart, and I don't want to ever lose her." He sighed, leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees with his head in his hands. "I don't know what to do Jazz, my 'know-it-all' shit ain't helpin' me with anythin', but I feel this connection to her that's completely unknown to me."

I could tell that he was upset, and worried about whatever was going on, and I started thinking back to living with that coven, and smirked, even though he couldn't see me. I felt like I needed to help him alone, but not tell him straight out. "So tell me Peter, you had just met her, was helping her because it was a dark, country road she broke down on. And when she gets taken by the red-head, what did you feel?"

I heard him sigh softly, "I felt like I had to protect her at all costs, no matter what happened to me, I had to make sure she was safe, that I couldn't lose her." He whispered the last part, and my smirk went to a full out smile. His emotions were telling me he was already devoted to her, and that he loved her immensely, but he didn't know that just yet.

"What about when she was telling you her history?" I felt I needed to ask, to see how he felt when he heard that she was dating another vampire, and her being in danger.

"Jazz, I don't know what you're getting' at, but when she told me about Edward, I want to find him and rip his ass apart." He still wasn't looking at me, and I was fine with that, he needed to realize what I was trying to get him to understand.

After a few minutes of sitting there thinking about what all he'd said, his head snapped up, looking at me sharply. His eyes were as wide as saucers, and his emotions were cycling through disbelief, astonishment, relief, contentment, and love. I smiled softly, nodding my head at his newfound revelation.

"She's my mate." He whispered, only making my smile grow bigger and I nodded again.

"Yeah, she's your mate Pete." He scowled at me slightly with the nickname, but didn't say anything, he just sat there staring at the wall, trying to process everything.

I wasn't sure how long we sat there in silence before he spoke, "Now what? I've never had a human around for longer than for me to eat. I don't know what I'm doin' here."

"You make sure she's got food, and she sleeps. And with that foot of hers, she needs to stay off it as much as possible. Other than that, just get to know her, find out what she likes, or doesn't like. Find out who she truly is, and not what you want her to be." I told him seriously, knowing that Edward always tried to control her and make her into what he wanted. He played with her head, making her comply to his every demand. "Also, I wouldn't tell her about the mate part yet. Let her come to you if she feels the pull. Edward fucked her up good by telling her that she was his mate and he only left her, and I bet if you tell her she'll think that you're just going to leave like he did."

He growled when I mentioned Edward and glared at me, I just shrugged, knowing that he wasn't going to do anything. "Thanks for the info. I'll be sure to keep the mate part to myself."

I nodded and we slipped back into silence, neither of us really wanting to talk. A couple hours later, as we were sitting there, we heard some stirrin' from upstairs, and Bella's heartbeat pickin' up to an unbelievable rate. Her emotions were yo-yoin' between fear, abandonment, disgust, anger, self-loathin', pain, hatred, and worthlessness.

I sighed, wonderin' what exactly Edward told her that day he left her.

Peter and I sat in the livin' room, listenin' for any signs of distress from her, other than what we were already hearing with her heartrate beating wildly, and her breathing being erratic. Both Peter and I heard her thrashing around on the bed, and she started talking in her sleep.

"No Edward, please don't… Why are you doing this to me… Let me go!" Her fear was the most dominant emotion I was feeling from her now. "No Edward, not like this… please… let me go, you said you'd never hurt me." She started thrashing around harder in the bed, causing Peter and I to run up the stairs to the room she was in. She had kicked the blankets off and she was sleeping in a pair of sweat pants and a tank top. "Edward… please… god stop it… please don't…" By this time, Peter and I were on either side of the bed, watching her. Her thrashing was getting worse and I thought she was going to hurt herself, it was like she was trying to get away, when it finally dawned on me, the emotions she was sending out, her begging him not like that, and that he'd never hurt her; Edward raped her before he left her. I growled, my eyes turning black.

By this time, Bella started whimpering, causin' both Peter and I to grimace slightly.

"What happened to her…" he asked mainly to himself, not figuring out what happened.

"Peter… She was raped… Edward did it before he left her in the woods apparently." He growled, and his eyes turned black with rage. "That's why she wasn't found for so long… she was in shock and probably in pain." I sighed, sitting down gently on the bed. Bella was still whimpering and thrashing around, her body covered in sweat. I gently moved the hair off her forehead, causing her to whimper louder and shy away from my touch.

"No… please… don't… just leave me alone…" she starts getting louder. Peter places a hand on her arm, causing her to scream. "Please… god just… go… don't touch me…" I tried sending her some calming waves, but she was blocking me, which has never happened and it started freaking me out some.

"Bella!" I hollered at her, causing her to flinch and wake suddenly. Her breathing was still erratic, and her heart was stuttering rapidly in her chest. "Bella, it's alright sweetie, we're not going to hurt you." I told her softly. She nodded, pulling her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. Her breathing started to slowly become normal again.

"I'm sorry." She whispered with her head still on her knees, she was feeling self-loathing, disgust, fear, and worthless.

"Sorry for what Angel?" Peter asked softly, sitting down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. She flinched slightly, but recovered quickly and leaned into him.

"I didn't want anyone to know… I'm so ashamed…" her voice breaking as she started crying.

"Darlin', you have nothin' to be ashamed of. If Edward was still alive, I'd go and find him, and kill him myself for what he did. You didn't deserve that, no woman does." Peter placed a soft kiss in her hair as he started gently running his fingers through it, causing her to snuggle closer to him. I reached and grabbed her hand, rubbing soothin' circles into her palm with my thumb.

I wasn't sure what to say to her, so I sat there, sending her calm and love, which finally worked, and it helped her relax slightly.

"Angel, would you like to talk about what happened? Maybe it will help you forget quicker." Peter nudged softly, kissinf her head again.

She started shakinf her head again, panickinf, so I sent her some calm and assurance. "Sweetheart, we aren't goinf to hurt you, I promise you that. You can trust us." I kissed her hand softly, hopinf to god she will tell us. She nods softly, snugglinf deeper into Peter's embrace.

"After the party, he took me home but was actinf weird and wasn't talkinf much. I thought he was just havinf a hard time dealinf with things, so I ignored it for the first day or so. After about three days, I got fed up with havinf him give me the silent treatment, so I was goinf to talk to him after school. He was waitinf for me at my house and asked me to go for a walk with him." She took a deep breath, her eyes closed tightly as tears were streamin out and her body trembling with fear. "I agreed because I wanted to say some things to him as well. As we were walking, he wouldn't even look at me. He turned towards me after we'd been walking for a while, and got to this small clearing in the woods. He told me that him and the family were leaving, and never coming back. That I was just a toy, a distraction and that he never truly loved me." She stopped briefly at mine and Peter's growl, her emotions going to worthlessness, self-loathing, and shame. "He said he was only with me because my blood smelled good, and he finally got a break from reading every one's mind since mine was silent." She started sobbing, clinging to Peter for dear life. "He told me that he was going to take something from me, something I'd been willing to give up before, but it didn't register in my mind what he was talking about." She started sobbing hysterically, shaking her head like she was trying to forget the memory.

"It's alright Darlin', Jasper and I are here now, we're not gonna to hurt you, or let anyone else hurt you either. Nothin' to be afraid of anymore Angel." Peter said, pulling her into his lap, rocking her back and forth gently.

She calmed down slightly, still sobbing and clinging to him for dear life and squeezing my hand as tight as her human body would allow. My heart breaking even more for her.

"He pressed me against a tree… ripping my shirt off… then he took my pants off… oh god… I was begginf him not to, not this way… but he wouldn't listen… he said "you were the one that kept asking for me to fuck you, so now I am, get over it bitch". I was sobbing so hard, but he didn't care. He ripped my panties off and started touching me." Her breathing was coming too fast and it scared me that she'd hyperventilate if she kept on like that so I kept sending her waves of calm, love, assurance, and trust, a low growl was constantly in my chest and my eyes were pitch black. "He looked up behind me and nodded, but I couldn't move…I was so scared that he was going to kill me. I heard a soft buzzing sound, like vampires speaking to where I can't hear them. I couldn't figure out who was there and not helpin' me. He took his clothes off…" she started shaking her head, her body racked with the shakes so bad it seemed like she was having a seizure or something and she was crying louder now. Peter whispered in her ear that it was ok, we weren't going to allow anyone else to hurt her. She nodded softly, "After he removed his clothing, I felt someone pin my arms back, holding me there so he could… so he could ra-rape me… I still didn't know who it was, they were hiding… He raped me three times… with his friend helping him the entire time…" she was sobbing hard again as she got up, limping to the bathroom and emptying her stomach contents and falling to the floor beside the toilet.

Peter and I sat there, stunned and in silence. Bella was still in the bathroom, sobbing when I finally snapped out of it. Both Peter and I growled lowly, low enough to where Bella didn't hear. We were both so angry that he could do this to her. I knew he never truly loved her, but there wasn't anything I could do. The family didn't trust me enough, even with my gift. They would have all thought I was lying just to get Bella to go away, but that wasn't the case. I wanted Bella around she was my sister, butI just wanted her away from Edward. I sighed as I thought back to this, and how much I hated that family.

I got up off the bed and walked to the door, knocking softly, "Bella? Can I come in sweetheart?"

She mumbled yes. When I walked in, she was leaning against the wall, next to the toilet. I slowly walked towards her, sitting next to her. I wrapped an arm around her shoulder, she flinched slightly but didn't pull away, so I pulled her close to me, running a hand through her hair softly.

"It's alright sweetheart, he's never going to hurt you again, I promise." She nodded into my chest, still crying softly. "No one in the family knew what happened, at least not that I'm aware of. But Peter and I will always protect you baby girl, you have nothing to worry about."

She shook her head, "No, you and Peter don't need me in your lives, I'm not worth the trouble anymore Jasper. I'm nothing but a weak, pathetic human. I can't burden your lives like that."

I growled, causing her to sit up quickly and store at me in fear. "You are neither weak, nor pathetic Isabella. You are strong, beautiful, courageous, intelligent, and most of all, you have survived this long with what happened to you, and you will continue to survive. You are not a burden to Peter and me. He and I both feel a strong pull to you. You are my sister, always have been and always will be, and I feel that you need to be protected. If you're worried about Victoria, that cuntpire is going to be ash soon enough. We have enough skills to take her out finally, and set you free of her vengeance." I told her, sending her calm, serenity, trust, and assurance.

She nodded, snuggling back into my chest. I heard Peter tell me that he was going to go find her something light to eat and let her and I spend some time together. I sent him some gratitude, picking Bella up and carrying her back to the bed, setting her down gently.

"Bella, you said that you couldn't tell who was helping Edward. Did you smell anything? Like what the other person/vampire smelled like?" I asked as gently as possible.

She sat there for a few minutes, thinking back to the day it happened. Her body was shaking again with silent sobs she wanted to release. "Uhm, I know it was a female, they had small, delicate hands. Smelled like vanilla ice cream with honey?" she scrunched her face up, thinking back. When she told me the smell, I growled, clenching my jaw shut tightly.

"Jasper? What's wrong?" She asked as she backed up on the bed, her emotions showing concern and slight fear, but I don't think it's because she's afraid of me.

"I know that smell." I hissed out, "I'll be back in a few minutes Bella." She nodded, curling up under the blanket.

I walked downstairs, pacing back and forth, a low growl staying steady in my chest. I grab my phone out of my pocket, thinking that if Alice can't see Bella, then she won't be able to see me making the choice to call her.

"**Hello Jasper." **She said, answering the phone.

"**Did you know?"** I asked, growling still.

"**Did I know what Jasper?"** She asked, trying to sound innocent.

"**Don't you dare play that shit with me Alice! You were there! You helped him! She smelt you!"** I yelled at her.

"**Yes, I knew, yes I helped, because she was nothing but a pathetic excuse for a human. She didn't deserve him! And he kills himself because he saw in my head that she jumped off the cliff and her future vanished! He would still be here if it wasn't for that human bitch!"** she growled at me.

"**She's alive and well Alice! She's alive, and found a way to block you completely from seeing her! Thank god she did, because you are a psychotic bitch who was in that mental institute for a god damn reason."** I hung up the phone, only to have it ring again. The caller ID showed it was Alice calling back. I ignored it and crumbled the phone in my hand.

Peter came back by then, and when he saw me, he sent me curiosity.

"Alice knew… She helped that fucking asshole rape her!" I growled out, pacing again.

He growled along with me. "Just wait till I get my hands on that cuntpire." He said.

Neither of us realized that Bella had been listening at the top of the stairs "No, neither of you are going to do anything. I want to be the one to rip her to shreds and burn her." We both turned, going up the stairs and lookin' at her.

"Don't even bother trying to talk me out of it. I'm tired of being the weak human that everyone has to fucking protect. It's high time I start protecting my own ass, don'tcha think?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at us.

"Darlin', I wasn't goin' to talk you out of anythin', I'd be happy to have ya around as a bad-ass vampire." Peter told her, grinning like a fool.

"Good. I always had a feeling it was Alice that helped him, but I couldn't be certain. Now that I am, she won't ever see me coming." She grinned evilly, her eyes sparking with mischief. "And she will pay for what she allowed that faggot to do to me."

I was taken aback with the hatred rolling off of her in waves, but felt it was truly justified seeing as how Alice let him rape her.

Peter carried Bella downstairs and gave her some food and some more pain meds. I sat on the floor at her feet, leaning back against the couch with my eyes closed.

"Jasper, what's wrong?" She asked me softly.

"I just can't believe she allowed him, even helped him do that to you. She always said you were her best friend, but the way she talked about you, there was so much hatred and malice in her voice." I hung my head, scared to even look at her.

I felt her shifting on the couch, but didn't look up. Her arms came around my neck from behind, "Jazz, honey, I'm fine now, you said so yourself that I survived, and I'm strong. Please don't let what she helped him do get you down please?" She whispered in my ear, tightening her arms around me. I placed my hands on her arms, squeezing softly, leaning back into her.

"You're right sweetheart. It just still bothers me is all." I whispered, turning my head to hide in her neck.

"Yes, it bothers me too, but we can't live in the past. If I did that, I'd still be the catatonic mess that Edward left five years ago." She kissed my cheek softly, pulling back, looking me in the eyes. "You're here now though, I'm here, and even your brother is here. We'll all get through this together, alright?" She asked softly. I nodded, turning my body around and sitting up on my knees, pulling her into a tight embrace.

"Thank you Bella. Your trust in me is unbelievable, and I'll always cherish the way you feel." I whispered into her hair. She sent me some love, trust, and confidence.

"You've always been my brother Jasper, no matter what's happened, no matter where we are in the world, you'll always be my brother, and I love you Jazz." I felt all her love hit me like a wrecking back, nearling bowling me over with the intensity of it. I relished in her pure emotion for a moment, closing my eyes and just feeling her love consume me. I pulled back and looked at her, smiling softly.

"I love you too Bells, you've always been my little sister, even though we were never allowed to be around each other. I'm glad I get this chance now." I told her, smiling softly, glad to finally be able to know Bella, and have her know me.

After she got done eating, I told her I was going to go hunt for a bit but that I'd be back. She nodded and I walked out the door after nodding to Peter.


	4. Relief

**Bella's POV:**

I had been here at Peter's for about a week now, my foot was still hurting pretty bad, but I wasn't letting the guys know about it. I'm not sure how I hid it from Jasper, but I think I'm doing a pretty good job. Peter even went and got me some crutches from the hospital, he of course stole them, causing me to roll my eyes.

"Hey Darlin', how ya feelin' today?" Peter came in, sitting on the floor next to me.

"I'm alright, took some Motrin earlier, so it's easing the pain off." I obviously lied, I didn't want them to go through any more trouble for me.

"Now, why do you lie to us every time we ask you that?" Jasper came in, scowling at me and calling me out on my lie. I groaned, laying my head back and closing my eyes.

"Because you have done enough for me damnit! I don't want you to have to go through anymore trouble for my puny ass!" I growled out at them.

"Angel, you aren't any trouble at all, please don't ever think that." Peter said, grabbing my hand, kissing it softly.

"Yes I am, here I am, a human in the house 24/7 with two vampires who are putting their lives on hold for me. It's not fair to you guys." I sighed softly, knowing full well that I'd never win this argument, but I had to get my opinion out.

"Our lives weren't much better till you came along." Peter joked, but it caused me to groan anyways.

I just laid there, not saying anything else. My foot was throbbing in pain, and honestly I think it needed something better than an ace bandage, but I wasn't going to say anythin'. Thank god neither of them were mind readers! I shuddered slightly, thinking about Edward.

"What's wrong sweetheart?" Jasper asked, feeling my emotions I bet.

"Nothing really, just a stray thought." I said, which was the partial truth.

"Bella, Darlin', would you mind if I look at your foot, make sure it's healin' properly?" Peter asked, causing me to swallow the lump in my throat. I nodded slightly.

I tensed up as I felt him removing the bandage, and the pain increased in my foot, causing me to bite my lip to keep from screamin' out. Jasper obviously felt my pain and discomfort, because he came and sat next to me, grabbing my hand and giving it a soft squeeze, sending me calm, love, and peace, taking the pain away with his gift.

"Darlin', this foot isn't healin' right, we might need to think about gettin' you to a hospital to get it fixed." He said, a serious tone to his voice, which caused me to look up at my now purple foot and gasp.

"Oh dear lord!" I sighed, closing my eyes tightly and nodded. "Yea, fine. Guess I'll have no choice. But what do we tell them when they ask why I didn't get it checked out a week ago when it happened?" I asked both of them.

"You let us worry about that sweetheart." Jasper said with a smirk.

"Alright, but I can't use my own name. They'll pull my medical files and alert my Dad since he's my emergency contact. And Victoria could find shit like she did for James that time from the school in Forks." I told Jasper, to have him nod at me.

"Alright, well let's get going before that foot gets any worse." He reached down, picking me up gently and walked out to his truck, a black Chevy Silverado king cab truck. He placed me in the back seat so I could stretch out and prop my foot up again. He let Peter drive, and sat in the back with me, running his fingers through my hair to keep me relaxed.

As we got closer, I started getting nervous and panicking slightly.

"What's wrong Bella?" Jasper asked at my sudden spike in emotions. I burrowed my head into his chest, mumbling that I hated hospitals, which gained me a chuckle from them both.

"It's alright, we'll be here with you the whole time." They said at the same time, earning a look from me.

When the doctor tried chastising me for not coming in immediately, Peter walked up next to me smiling slightly, "Hey Doc, how do you like your job here?" The doctor looked at Peter and shuddered slightly, "I like it just fine, why do you ask sir?" He asked Peter. "Because if you keep harassin' my girl here about not gettin' that foot checked out, you won't have it anymore. I'm the one that wrapped it up, I've got a medical degree but don't have supplies at my house to do anythin', and I haven't decided what to do with it just yet. I suggest you apologize to her for your rude bed-side manner, or kiss your job goodbye." Peter threatened, causing the doctor's face to drain of color, "I'm sorry Ma'am." And walked out the door, taking my chart with him.

"Peter, was that entirely necessary?" I asked, annoyance in my voice.

"Yes, Darlin', it was. He was bein' rude and didn't know all the facts, so I had to set him straight. Plus the disgust that Jasper was feelin' from the guy was royally pissin' me off." He stated simply. I shrugged and leaned back on the bed, closing my eyes.

After the doctor came in again and fixed my foot up, we went to the drug store to get my script filled and went back home. Neither Peter, nor Jasper would let me walk on the crutches, afraid that I would fall down and hurt myself more. I rolled my eyes at that, but let them carry on the way they wanted to. It wasn't like I could fight off two vampires even if I wanted to, and I didn't really want to, to be perfectly honest.

So here I sat, on the couch, watchin' TV while the guys went hunting. I started to doze off when I heard a strange noise outside that sounded like scratching on the windows, then laughter. My breath caught in my throat, and my heart nearly stopped. I knew who was outside the window. I immediately grabbed my phone, punching in the only number I had at the moment.

"_**Hey sweetheart, what's wrong?" **_He asked, knowing that I'd only call if somethin' was wrong.

"_Jazz, she's here… outside the windows…" _I whispered softly, only hearing a growl come from the other side of the phone.

"_**We're on our way Isabella." **_I gulped, knowing that the Major was out now, and very pissed off.

I hung the phone up, staying still, even though it wouldn't help with my heart hammering out of my chest.

"Oh Bella! Come out and play my pet!" She hollered through the window.

I remained quiet and still, hoping that Jasper and Peter would get here quickly. The next thing I know, the window she was outside of shattered, and she was standing right in front of me.

"Ah, there you are my pet. Thought you could hide from me with those two idiots?" She sneered at me. When I looked at her, I let out a breath of relief at seeing both Peter and Jasper standing behind her, glaring.

"Actually Bitch, they aren't idiots, you are for thinking you'd finally get me. Turn around and meet your fate cunt!" I yelled at her.

She turned around, seeing both Peter and Jasper without the shirts on, seeing all their scars and their black eyes. She started shaking slightly, making Jasper grin wickedly, and feeling her fear.

"Oh, now who's the idiot Victoria?" Peter asked, baring his gleaming white teeth at her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize she was under your protection. I'll leave, and never come back." She tried talking her way out of this shithole she's made for herself.

"Oh I think not Victoria, ya messed with Isabella, and ya messed with us. Ya will die tonight, and Isabella will have the victory of throwin' ya head into the flames if she so chooses." Jasper growled at her, sendin' her cowerin' to the floor. I could hear his southern accent coming through, and I smiled softly, knowing that I had 2 warrior Gods to protect me.

"Please, I… I'm sorry. I was j…just trying to get revenge for the death of my mate, Ja…James. I didn't realize that Isabella had two to protect her. Please, I'll never try to harm her again. I will go and you'll never see me again, I promise!" She was begging for her life, and I didn't feel an ounce of guilt for ending her. She's been chasing me for the last 5 years, making my life a living hell.

"Vicki, shut the fuck up you stupid cuntpire and deal with the fate you've basically dealt yourself. If you'd left me alone 5 years ago, you wouldn't be about to die you psychotic fuckin bitch!" I screamed at her, making her shake with more fear. She thought she was dealing with a weak, pathetic human, but she was sorely mistaken, which made me laugh in her face.

Peter came forward, grabbing Victoria's arms, getting closer to her ear, "Ya done fucked with the wrong human bitch. She's mine, and you will now be goin' to join your fuckin' asshole mate who attacked Isabella." With that, he yanked her arms back, removing them completely from her body. I gasped, causing both guys to look at me. They looked at each other, talking to where I couldn't hear then and then grabbed Victoria and took her outside into the woods so I wouldn't have to see or hear it.

I leaned back on the couch, closing my eyes, breathing a sigh of relief. I hadn't even known that I was crying till Peter spoke.

"Darlin', are you alright, she didn't hurt you did she?" He asked, fear evident in his voice.

"No Petey, she didn't touch me. You guys got here just in time. I'm just crying because it's finally over. She's finally been dealt with. It's a freeing experience." I sighed softly, wrapping my arms around Peter. "Thank you." I whispered in his ear.

"We told you we'd protect you always. It was a smart thin' you did though, callin' Jasper like that. We were actually on our way home when you called." He said, smiling and cupping my cheek in his hand.

"It was the first thing I thought about. When I heard scratching on the windows, I knew she had found me again. I knew I couldn't get away with my broken foot, and I knew that you and Jasper had said you could take care of her." Tears were still streaming out of my eyes, finally free of her. "I guess I'll need to call Jacob and tell him she's been dealt with." I grabbed my phone, dialing the number from memory.

"**Hello?" **Jake answered, annoyed.

"**Jake? It's Bella."** I spoke softly.

"**Bells? What's wrong?" **He was clearly in a panic now.

"**Jake, nothing's wrong anymore. Victoria has been dealt with. She's finally dead."** I told him, relief in my voice.

"**How did you deal with her Bella?" **I could understand his not thinking I would be able to do it, and I knew he'd be so totally pissed off at me for what I'm going to tell him, but I couldn't lie to Jake about anything.

"**Jake, you're going to be pissed off about it. But I was driving through Texas when my truck started acting funny. I had pulled over on the side of the road, when Peter came and helped fix the truck, but Victoria came and grabbed me before Peter could get it fixed. He chased her into the woods, and she dropped me. She ran off, but came back tonight to finish the job. I called Peter and Jasper, and they came and killed her. Yes, it's the Jasper you are thinking about. Yes they are vampires, but they saved my life, and I don't want to hear any shit from you about it either, you got that Jacob Black?"** I said, mostly in one breath.

"**Breath Bells. I'm not angry. I'm glad you're safe though. No, I don't like you being with the bloodsuckers, but at least the firecrotch is finally gone and you can go on living your life without fear of her coming to get you." **He spoke in his Alpha voice that he took over about 4 years ago when Sam and Emily decided to have their first baby. "**I'm going to go tell the pack. We had been doing patrols still, hoping she'd come back. We didn't realize that she had followed you."**

"**Jacob, I'm fine. You just said you didn't realize that she had followed me. I'm just thankful that Peter was there the night she grabbed me out of the truck. I'm also thankful that Peter and Jasper were coming home from hunting when I called them to tell them she was here. She had gotten into the house, but as soon as she got to me, I saw Peter and Jasper there. They got to her before she could hurt me."** I was trying to reassure him, knowing good and well what he was going to be asking next.

"**So are you coming home then?" **He asked softly, hoping that I would go home to him and the pack even though he imprinted.

"**No Jake. I'm not. I can't come back to Forks. Yes, I miss you and Charlie, but Charlie has his own life now with Sue, and you've got a life with Karla. I need to find my own life Jake. I need to learn to live for myself. But I will always love you, you are my big brother, my protector when I had no one left. You know what happened to me, and you brought me back to life Jake. I will be forever grateful for that. But you got to go live your life with the pack and your imprint."** I knew it was going to hurt him saying that, but I couldn't bring myself to go back home. Too many memories were still there. Yes I had healed, and gotten over Edward's abandonment and what he did to me, but it didn't mean it hurt any less, or that I wasn't still fearful.

"**Alright Bells. I'm going to go tell the pack she's ash now. Keep in touch please. I want to know you're safe. Tell the leeches thanks for us." **That took me completely by surprise.

"**Alright Jakey."** I giggled as he playfully growled. "**Love ya big brother."**

"**Love you too little sister." **And with that, he hung up.

Jasper had come in by now, his eyes back to their golden color. He looked at me, his eyes softening slightly. Peter had gone into the kitchen while I was on the phone, probably getting me more food.

I opened my arms for Jasper to come to me. He was there in a flash, wrapping his strong, cold arms around me.

"I thought we weren't going to get here in time Bella. I was so scared of losing you again, I can't lose my sister ever again." He whispered into my hair.

"Hey, I'm alright Jasper. You did get here in time. I was scared myself, thinking she was going to take me away from you and Peter. When I heard scratching on the window, I knew she was here, and I knew that I had to get you here to finally end her." I ran my fingers through his hair gently, he was still clinging to me like he was afraid that I was going to disappear. "It's alright honey, I'm not going anywhere." I whispered into his ear.

"Don't ever leave me Bella, please." For the first time, I saw just how broken this man really was, and it angered me slightly that the Cullen's could do this to him.

"Aww, Jasper, I'm not going to leave you. I'm here to stay." I hugged him tightly.

Peter walked in then, carrying a plate of fruit to me, smiling softly. He set it down on the table beside the couch, sitting behind me. They both acted like they were afraid something was going to happen now that she was finally gone.

"Guys, I'm alright, and I'm not leaving." I leaned back into Peter, with Jasper still wrapped around me, still running my fingers through his hair.

Just then, Peter's phone began ringing, causing all of us to jump slightly. Who would have thought that vampires could be startled.

"**Hello?"** He asked, not recognizing the number.

"**Why, hello Peter. I would like to speak with Jasper since he crushed his phone." **I heard a female voice say on the other end, knowing full well who it was.

Jasper tensed up as he heard the voice, wrapping his arms tighter around me. I leaned down and whispered to him, "It's alright, she'll get what's coming to her. Talk to her and find out what she wants so we can be prepared." He nodded, grabbing the phone, putting it on speaker phone so I could hear as well.

"**What Alice?"** he asked, his voice cold and hard.

"**Oh don't be like that Jazzy," **he growled. "**I just wanted to know if Victoria got to that stupid human or not." **She laughed, causing both guys to growl. I placed a hand on each and shook my head, grinning slightly.

"**Why Alice, do you mean you can't see me? Because I'm very much alive, and I plan on exacting revenge on those that have hurt me and the guys, which means I'm coming for you bitch."** I laughed back at her as I heard her sharp intake of breath.

"**No, she should have gotten you! How are you still alive you pathetic bitch!" **She screeched through the phone.

"**Aww, did little Alice's plan not work? I'm alive bitch because I've got the Major and his SIC, the Captain here. I called them as soon as I heard Vicki, your little girl-toy scratching on the windows. They got here just as Vicki was going to attack, and she's been reduced to ashes. Guess you'll just have to wait and see what fate has in store for you now huh, Alice?"** I saw the guys smirking at me slightly.

"**No, I will come after you bitch, you aren't going to win this one." **She hung up before we could say anything else.

"Jasper, are you still in contact with Emmett and Rosalie?" I asked, grinning still.

"Yea, why?" He asked, with a cautious look in his eyes. I was still leaning on Peter, holding Jasper's hand as I smiled softly.

"Because I think it's time we alert the family just how psychotic Alice really is." I chuckled darkly.

Both guys looked at me, wonderin' just what I had planned, but I wasn't going to reveal anything till we got the family here at least.

"Call Emmett, tell him you have a surprise for him and to come here as soon as possible. I will be changed, no arguing with me. Then we will go find Carlisle and Esme and exact my revenge on the psychotic pixie whore." I looked at them both, seeing their eyes sparkle as they looked at me.

"Alright sweetheart, we'll follow your lead on this one." Jasper looked like a kid who had his puppy stolen, causing me to laugh. He looked at me, raising an eyebrow, obviously feeling my humor.

"Sorry Jasper, but you look like someone stole your puppy when you said you'd follow my lead!" Peter laughed with me, nodding his head. Jasper hung his head like he was embarrassed.

"Aww, my poor little vampire." I giggled, "After I exact my revenge, you can be leader again." Peter was doubled over laughing now, causing Jasper to chuckle at us.

He threw a pillow at us, "Alright you two, just laugh it up. I'm just not used to not being in charge. Feels weird is all." He shrugged and smirked at me.

I rolled my eyes at him, "Go make that phone call Major." I raised an eyebrow at him, crossing my arms over my chest to show I wasn't afraid.

"Yes ma'am." He said quickly, going outside.

"Damn Darlin', I ain't ever seen anyone put the Major in his place." Peter smiled, pulling me back to him again. His face went to my hair, breathing deeply. "I'm just glad you're ok Angel. I don't know what I'd do if somethin' happened to you." I could hear the tears in his voice that he couldn't cry.

I turned my body towards him, cupping his cheek, "Peter, I'm right here, and I'm fine. You and Jasper got here just in time. Please stop worrying, Peter." I kissed his cheek softly, wrapping my arms around him, holding him tightly to me, relaxing my body slightly. It still amazed me that after everything Edward did to me, I was this comfortable being close to another man, let alone two. Yes I was still terrified of all things intimate, but being wrapped in their arms, and being close to them didn't scare me quiet as much. I know I saw Jasper as my brother, and I'm grateful to have him in my life, but I was shocked that I could be this close to Peter. He didn't feel like a brother to me.

"I'll try to stop worryin', but it scared us both when you called, sayin' she'd found you. I have never run so fast in my entire time on this Earth, Angel." He was clinging to me much like Jasper did. And like with Jasper, I ran my fingers through Peter's hair, causing him to relax and take a deep breath.

"I'm fine Peter. I'm not going anywhere, you heard Jacob ask me if I was going home, and I told him no. I want to stay here with you and Jasper. You guys mean everything to me." I whispered to him, moving to sit in his lap and holding him tightly.

I knew that things were gonna be crazy, but I never imagined they'd be this crazy.


	5. Revelations

**Jasper's POV:**

I stepped outside, feeling like Peter needed to talk to Bella, to reassure himself that she really was alright. I was so scared when she called, saying that Victoria was there. When we got there, and Bella was sitting on the couch, I seriously thought we weren't going to get to her in time, but she saw us, and she sent me a fuckton of love, trust, and gratitude.

When she told Victoria to turn around and meet her fate, I felt the smugness coming off Bella, which made me smile internally. I felt true fear rolling off Victoria now, seeing both Peter and I without our shirts on. Bella was throwing off slight lust when she looked at Peter, but also fear, probably after what Edward did to her and seeing us without shirts on.

When Peter grabbed Victoria and ripped her arms off, I felt Bella's emotions turn to disgust, which made me tell Peter we needed to toke this outside away from Bella.

Once she was taken care of, Peter ran to the house, to make sure Bella was ok. They talked for a little bit before she had to call Jacob. He was angry, I could tell by his voice, but he wasn't upset that she was alright. He even asked her to come home, and my heart broke until she told him that she wasn't going to. I was hoping that she'd stay here.

After my breakdown with Bella, I felt better, until she started giving me orders, shocking the fuck out of me. I've always been the one to give the orders. They both laughed at me, she said I looked like someone stole my puppy. Peter was sending me so much humor and amusement that I couldn't help but laugh. Seems as though Bella has healed us both in the short time she's been here.

I had walked outside to gather my thoughts and make the phone call that Bella had ordered me to make, causing me to smile again.

"**Hello?" **I had forgotten that I was using a different phone number.

"**Hey Em. What's going on?"** I tried to act like nothing was wrong.

"**Not much, just Rosie and I are traveling around a bit. Alice has been going crazy the past week or so." **He said, trying to be gentle about the whole Alice subject.

"**Why don't you and Rose come down to Texas. I got quite a surprise for ya."** I grinned again, knowing his reaction when he sees Bella.

"**What's the surprise?" **he chuckled softly, I knew he couldn't resist for long.

"**I can't tell you that, just know that you'll love it when you get your ass down here."** I could hear Rosalie in the background, making the arrangements to come down.

"**Alright, we'll be there in a couple days. You better not be fucking with me about this surprise Jasper, or I'll kick your ass." **I laughed at him, knowing full well that he couldn't kick my ass even if he tried to.

"**Alright Em. See ya soon."**

I closed the phone, walking back inside when I heard Bella saying she wanted to stay here with us and that we mean everything to her. I doubt I was supposed to hear it, since she whispered it so low, but I did nonetheless.

Peter sensed me coming in the room, and looked up. His eyes were glassy looking, like he'd been crying. His emotions were going haywire, but the most prominent emotion was love whenever he looked at her.

"Emmett and Rosalie will be here in a couple days. I didn't tell them you were here, since it's a surprise. They apparently had to leave for a while because Alice has been going insane." Bella snorted and rolled her eyes.

"That pixie bitch has always been insane. She was in a mental institute before she became a vampire, and her mental problems carried over." She stated, like it didn't mean a thing, when in reality it actually did. None of us had ever thought about it like that.

"How did you figure that out Bella?" I asked, concern and worry laced in my voice.

She sighed, lowering her head to look at her lap. "When I first started out on my road trip, I went to where the asylum she was in, and broke in, getting her records. I then went to the town hall and looked up all the old records for Mary Alice Brandon." She looked at me, anxiety was her most prominent emotion. "Jasper, she was psychotic, like truly psychotic. She claimed she saw dead people, ghosts not vampires, that she had visions, which was true at that time. I even looked into her family background, and nearly all the women on her father's side were put in an institute for some kind of mental problem." She stopped, looking down at her hands, her nervousness was getting stronger, like she had something else to say, but was afraid of how we'd react to it.

"What else sweetheart?" I asked gently, letting her know I wasn't upset with her, and that she could continue.

She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before speaking again, "Jazz, she killed 3 people before she was placed in the institute. She claimed they were demons, and that her visions were telling her that they had to be stopped. One of them was a little boy, he was only 8 years old and she butchered him." She was crying softly, and I knew that if I could cry, I'd be crying as well. Who knew that Alice was so insane. "One of the other people she killed was her baby sister. The little girl was not even 2 years old yet, and Alice killed her because spilled milk all over her brand new dress. When her parents went to bed that night, Alice was still awake and snuck into her sister Madelyn's room and smothered her with a pillow." She had turned her body towards Peter, and buried her head in his chest, sobbing softly. "She kept blaming everything that she did on her visions, and after her sister's death, her parents had her committed. She killed an orderly while there by pushing him down a flight of stairs."

She stopped talking then, just clinging to Peter. I couldn't comprehend what she told me about Alice. I knew that Alice and I were no longer together, but could my ex-wife be as crazy as Bella says? It would make sense though, how she swears by her visions even though they are only subjective and could change at any time.

Apparently Bella fell asleep on better, and I was so lost in my own thoughts that I didn't hear her whimpering until I felt Peter's emotions change to concerned and love. I turned to them, seeing the pain in his eyes at Bella having a nightmare again.

"Bella, my Angel, wake up. It's just a dream. You're safe." She screamed again as Peter touched her face softly before realizing that it wasn't Edward touching her, it was Peter.

"Oh god." She started sobbin, curling up into herself. Her body trembling from the memories from that dream.

"It's alright Angel, he can't hurt you anymore. It was just a dream, that's all it was. We'll get Alice back for her part in what he did to you. It's alright now." He was running his fingers through her hair, murmuring soft words to her. "I'm here for you Angel; you have nothin' else to fear." She nodded softly, scooting her body up to sit in his lap, clinging to him like a life raft.

"God why did that dream have to come back now." She whispered, mostly to herself.

"Darlin', it came back because you had another trauma come into your life. Victoria attacked you, bringin' back the other memories of bein' attacked in the forest. It's alright though. You are perfectly safe here, and no one else can hurt you, my Angel." She melted into him slightly as he called her his angel, finally calming down enough that her breathing and heart rate returned to normal.

I couldn't sit there any longer and watch her fall apart, she was my little sister, and I hated to see her in so much pain and so afraid of the world. I told Peter that I had to go hunt and he just nodded. She was snuggling into his chest, breathing somewhat normally when I left.

I just ran, out into the woods so I could demolish some trees and release some anger. I wasn't aware of how long I'd been outside, but at this point in time, I really didn't care. I decided to call one person who might be able to help me, but I had sworn I'd never speak to again; Carlisle. I knew I couldn't tell him who it was, or anything like that, but I needed to see if there was a way to get my sister better, so I swallowed my pride and called.

"**Hello?" **He asked, unsure of who he was talking to.

"**Hello Carlisle." **I spoke, trying my best to remain calm.

"**Hello Jasper. How are you?" **He asked, trying to act like nothing had ever happened between me and his coven.

"**I have a couple questions for you, if you have time."** I wasn't going to give more details then I could, but I needed to find out what was going on.

"**Sure, go ahead."**

"**Well, I've run into someone that I used to know, and he has a mate, and she is actually a human. Well tonight, while she was asleep, and the night before, she's been plagued with severe nightmares. She was also brutally raped by a guy and his female friend. She obviously can't have a man touch her unless she initiates contact, but she can't talk about it, or look at anyone in the eye, and I would like to know what I can tell my friend about how to handle this. She is his mate, but she doesn't know that, he wants her to heal first before telling her." **I heard his sudden intake of breath, like I was going to drain this human who was a friends mate.

"**Well, I have heard of it a couple times when a vampire mates with a human. But I would assume that this woman is just like all the other women who get raped, she will need to talk to a professional. Who is this person that you've met Jasper?" **he asked, as if I'd tell him who it really was.

"**Just a woman I came in contact with a few days ago at my friends house. I saved her life, and she and I have been talking and getting to know each other." **Which wasn't a total lie, seeing as how Bella and I had never talked before because of Edward and Alice always keeping us apart.

"**I see, maybe I should come down and check her out. If you say she's your friends mate, and she's had some type of psychological, and most likely physical abuse that she frequently dreams about and might need to be monitored medically so her dreams don't hurt her by reliving them."** He said, just itching to get me away from the human before I drain her.

"**I don't think so Carlisle. I know what you are thinking, I'm not some idiot. You are thinking that I'm going to drain her, and you want to take her away. I'm not going to fucking drain her. If she's going through this, and she's his mate, do you really think I'd do that? I'll be the one to help her out with this, along with her mate. She's already told me some things, and frankly she's been through enough with our kind. She's been chased for years by a deranged psychotic vampire out for revenge. I will not tolerate it any longer." **I growled at him, causing him to gasp. He's never had me speak to him this way, not even when Alice left me, and I was essentially kicked out of the family.

"**I'm sorry Jasper, I do trust you, it's just you've had so many slip-ups, I was trying to take precautions."**

"**Oh whatever Carlisle! I wouldn't have attacked Bella on her fucking birthday, I was protecting her for crying out loud! Edward was ready to spring at her, as well as your 'perfect pixie'. There are things you have NO idea about, and if you did, you probably wouldn't fucking believe it, so I'm not even going to say anything more. Goodbye Carlisle."** I hung up on him before I revealed too much more.

I growled loudly, kicking the tree I was standing next to, to the ground. How dare that family blame me for everything. I wasn't the one lusting after Bella's blood, nor was I the one that wants Bella dead. She's my brother's mate, and my little sister, and I will do anything in my power to protect her.

I was so angry at that entire family, granted I'd just called Rosalie and Emmett down, but that was only before Bella wanted to talk to them. I knew that Rose could probably help Bella out, but I wasn't going to hold out for that to ever happen. Rose hated Bella, hated her so much that she wanted to kill her. Even before we left Forks, she was talking about killing her so she couldn't expose us, but everyone told her to leave Bella alone, and we left. I couldn't believe that we left that poor girl all by herself, with no one to protect her. Yea she had the wolves, but they were young and immature, and probably didn't know how to fight a true vampire. They were used to seeing the pussy-assed Cullen's, and probably didn't know a true vampire from a hole in their asses.

I vowed from this moment on that I was going to do anything in my power to make sure Bella was safe, and that she knew she was loved and wanted and nothing was ever going to happen to her again.


	6. Family Ties

**AN: **I know I keep forgetting to say this, but I own nothing.

* * *

><p><em><span>Peter's POV:<span>_

I knew that Jasper was havin' a hard time dealin' with this, it's not like we knew what was really goin' on in her dream, we were flyin' blind so to speak with all this. Jasper had to go hunt for a while, the emotions from her dream were killin' him, and so he walked outside while I stayed with Bella. She laid in my lap for the longest time, just sittin' there so I wasn't makin' any move to try and get up, I was content to hold her in my arms. We sat there for the longest time, neither of us movin' and she started dozin' off.

After Bella went back to sleep, Jasper came back, and he and I sat there, both starin' down at her with awe and love in our eyes, although his love was different than mine, but it was love all the same.

"Jasper, how are we gonna go about this after everythin' she's been through?" I asked quietly, slightly fearful that she wouldn't want to be here with us after what Edward did to her.

"I honestly don't know Peter. She's so scared to trust fully, it's amazing that she's even allowing us to be near her at all. From what I heard from Rosalie, women who go through that don't like being touched, looked at, or near anyone else at all. Maybe she's gone through some type of therapy, obviously not saying anything about vampires or anything. She is afraid that she's going to get hurt again, and not just emotionally. She's afraid of being left behind. She's got so many emotions going through her on a daily basis that it gives me a headache and makes me sick at my stomach from her roller-coaster of emotions." He spoke softly, restin' one hand on her calf as she slept in my lap. She let out a soft sigh, snugglin' into me further, causin' me to smile softly.

"Maybe when Rosalie gets here, she can help Bella deal with the emotions she's going through?" I asked softly, knowin' exactly what Rosalie went through, just part of my know-how shit, and prayin' that they don't flip out that Bella's here and is willin' help her.

"I honestly don't know how Rosalie is going to act knowing Bella's here. I've got a feeling it's not going to go good, I know that Rosalie never truly cared for Bella because she was willing to give up her life for that fucking tool, but that was about as far as it went." He spoke truthfully of the ice-queen, and even I knew how Rosalie was towards people who she thought was beneath her.

Jasper had gone outside to make a phone call I suppose, and I sat there, lookin' down at the beautiful woman in my arms. I could sit and stare at her all day long, but I knew she would probably freak out if I did that, so I settled with just lettin' her warmth seep into my body, and her scent to swirl around me, keepin' me calm.

After a few minutes, she started wakin' up again, her nightmare always drainin' her to the point where she's not sleepin' fully. We talked for a few minutes before she asked if I could carry her upstairs so she could bathe and take care of her other human needs. I chuckled softly, pickin' her up and takin' her to the bathroom. I wrapped her foot in a bag, like the doctor ordered and saw the embarrassment and fear flash over her face about me havin' to help her undress. I tried tellin' her I wouldn't look, but that obviously didn't ease her fear so I set her on the side of the tub to take care of what she needed to do.

Jasper came back about ten minutes after she was finally in the tub.

"How is she?" He asked, lookin' at the ceilin', probably tryin' to gauge her emotions.

"Man, he royally fucked her up. When she woke up again, she wanted to take a bath, so when I took her up, she was scared and tryin' to figure out how to get undressed and in the tub. She flinched when I tried helpin' her, like she's afraid to let anyone see her body. Makes sense that she'd wear long sleeves and pants in the heat here in Texas too. She's very self-conscious, after what he did to her." I said, lookin' out the slidin' glass door off the kitchen.

"I can't believe he did that to her. He never showed any emotions that would reflect that he'd do something like that. He always had love in his emotions when she was around although I knew it wasn't for her, it was for her blood and her silent mind, but still." He sighed, sitting down at the table, placing his head in his hands in his normal fashion when he was upset about something. "Maybe Rose can help her deal with it like you suggested, I surely hope so. She needs a female to talk to, to work through all the shit she's going through."

"When are they gettin' here?" I asked, still not lookin' at him. It's hard to look at someone when you're feelin' so damn low all you want to do is crawl in a hole and die. I knew I couldn't die, but I felt like shit because I couldn't help my mate through this. Hell she didn't even know I was her mate, and I couldn't tell her now, not after what Fuckward did to her. I sighed softly, restin' my head against the glass of the slidin' door, tryin' to figure thin's out.

He finally spoke, telling me that they'd be here soon, but wasn't sure about an exact time. I just nodded and stood there, looking out at the sunset and sighing softly. Neither of us spoke for a while, and I was content with that, it left me to my thoughts. All the thoughts of how to help Bella, and get her to trust me, and accept the mating bond. Jasper finally broke me out of my thoughts by clearing his throat unnecessarily, I turned and looked at him to see him glance at the ceiling, I got the hint and nodded.

"She's been in the tub for a while now, I'll pick her up somethin' to eat on my way back from huntin'. We'll need to get some groceries for her though." I told him before steppin' outside, racin' towards town to feed. My head goin' a million miles a minute. I'm still unsure as to how to go about getting' Bella over this traumatizin' thin' that's happened to her and get her to trust us. I couldn't bear to lose her, she's the other part of my heart and soul that was missin'.

I stayed out in town for about two hours, feedin' and cleanin' up my mess, and start to head home, when I have this strange sense of dread hittin' me like a ton of bricks from out of nowhere. I decided to rush home, hopin' everythin' is alright with Bella, when I hear a voice I wasn't expectin'.

"Jesus, Jasper, you lost Alice and Edward leaves her in the hopes of her returning to a normal life, and you jump at the first chance you can to find her and bring her home?" Rosalie growled at him.

"Now you listen here Rosalie Lillian Hale, you don't know the shit that she's been through for the last five years. You don't know what your '_brother'_ did to her. You don't know anything, so back the fuck off or get the fuck out." He growled back at her. I heard Bella's heartbeat in the kitchen, listenin' to everythin' they were sayin'. She was cryin' and tryin' to keep it quiet, but I could smell the salt from her tears, and it broke my heart to see her like this.

I walked in, catchin' her eyes, walkin' to her and wrappin' my arms around her as she cried silently into my chest, I could tell her heart was breakin' over what Rosalie was sayin', and I wasn't goin' to stand for it any longer.

"Oh I know plenty Jasper Whitlock. I know that Edward died thinking that Bella was dead, I know that Alice was heartbroken that her brother basically killed himself, that her husband left, and that her best friend wasn't around any longer." Rosalie hissed again. As soon as Rosalie said that, Bella jerked out of my grasp and stormed into the livin' room where they were fightin', even with a broken foot in a cast, she was able to march in there like nothing was wrong with her foot.

"Now wait just a god damn minute Rosalie! What Edward did when he thought I was dead is his own god damn fault, not mine, nor Jasper's. Fuck you Rosalie, you don't know _HALF_ of what I've been through because you and your stupid coven. Your '_brother'_ and '_sister'_ raped me the day he left me. Edward ripped my clothes off, while Alice held my hands so I couldn't fight to get way. I'm glad Edward is dead, but I'm still haunted by nightmares of the day he fucking violated me! You have absolutely no right to come into this house and started barking out your disgust for me, if you have something to fucking say, say it to my face bitch or as Jasper said, get the fuck out!" Bella glared at both Rosalie and Emmett, crossin' her arms over her chest and standin' in front of both Jasper and myself.

"You stupid little human, you think that just because you had one Cullen, you want to go after another one?" Rosalie started stalkin' towards Bella, causin' Jasper and I to growl.

"It's alright boys, she wouldn't dare touch me, because she knows she'd have the Major on her ass quicker then Emmett can pull his head out of his own ass." She said, turnin' back towards them. "No Rosalie, I don't expect to be with a Cullen, or even be around anymore Cullen's. If you haven't noticed, it's Whitlock around here bitch, so get to steppin' if you don't like the way things are done in this house." Seein' Bella stand her ground was somethin' I hadn't ever believed she'd be able to do yet, but apparently I was wrong, all we had to do was throw Rosalie into the mix and Bella turns into a feisty woman.

Rosalie growled, lookin' at the three of us standin' there, protectin' each other, when she whipped around towards Jasper and glared at him.

"So this is how it is Jasper, you're just going to turn your back on us for some stupid, pathetic human? I've been your sister for longer than she's been alive." Rosalie flipped her hair over her shoulder, her eyes flickin' towards where Bella and I were standin', and I could have sworn I saw something in her eyes that told a different story, but I couldn't be absolutely sure since it was gone before I could process it. Something to decipher later unless things got resolved now.

"Fuck you Rosalie, you are no longer my sister. You stopped being my sister when I was _**FORCED **_out of the Cullen house. I thought we could at least be friends, maybe try and salvage things between us, but I see that Alice has you poisoned as well. Peter has been my brother longer then YOU'VE been alive there Miss Prissy-bitch. Get the fuck out of our house now. Or I'll remove you." He glared at them, causin' them to flinch away.

"Fine, pick the weak, stupid human over us." Rose stated as she started to turn around.

"Oh wait, send a message to your precious family." Bella smirked softly, "Tell them, I'm coming." Bella did the cutest little kitten growl, causin' them both to stare at her bug eyed.

"Oh yes, we're scared of the human psycho." Rose scoffed and rolled her eyes. The next thing anyone knew, Bella was in front of Rose, her breath coming in soft pants as she glared murderously at them. Had that look been directed at me, I would have been the first vampire to ever piss himself.

"You want to fuck with me Rosalie Hale?" Her voice was a deadly calm that I saw made Jasper flinch and take a step back. "Want me to have Emmett take back your ashes to your '_parents'_, or shall I just dump them in the fucking creek?" Bella growled again, scarin' the shit out of me, and I'm 175 years old! I'd never heard anyone that could sound like that, unless you count Jasper back in the southern wars.

"I'll tell the family, but you don't dare threaten me human. I'm not scared of you." Rose just made the biggest mistake that I think she's ever made in her vain life. Bella threw her head back, laughin' like a mad woman.

"Wanna know something bitch?" Bella asked, gettin' up into Rose's face, causin' Rose to step back closer to Emmett. "I can promise you right now, I will be changed, and once I am, I will be coming after you and your family. You can either stay here, learn about things you have never heard of, and deal with me, or you and Emmett can leave with your tail between your legs, running back to mommy and daddy crying and just waiting for the day when I come after your family, cause when I come after them, I'll make you sit and watch while I torture them all and you wouldn't be able to do a damn thing about it. You make the choice right now; stay or leave." Bella said, crossin' her arms over her chest, glarin' at Rose and Emmett, waitin' on their response.

Of course, Emmett being Emmett had to voice his opinions, and break the tension in the house. "Damn Bells, you got balls now!" He bellowed as he stepped out from behind Rose and walked towards Bella, lookin' at all three of us for permission. When he got the nod from me and Jasper, he looked at Bella with a hopeful look in his eyes. I saw her give him a small grin and nod, and as soon as she did, he swooped her up in his arms, twirlin' her around.

"God, I've missed you so much Bells. I'm so sorry for listening to them and not following my heart." I hear him whisper to her with so much emotion in his voice.

"Em, it's alright, I understand, and I'm glad you all left, it gave me a chance to grow up and figure out what I wanted in my life." She wrapped her arms around his neck, huggin' him tight.

When he finally let her down, he turned to his wife, wonderin' what she was goin' to do. What she did next surprised us all.

"Bella, I'm sorry. I only said those things because I thought that you were out to destroy us. I can see now that we're the ones that destroyed you. If you can find it in your heart to forgive me, I'd like to start fresh." Rose was lookin' at the ground sheepishly, which was something I've never seen Rosalie Hale ever do.

Bella walked towards Rose and smiled softly, "It's fine Rosalie, I can understand why you acted the way you did. I forgive you." Bella whispered the last part as she came to stand right in front of Rose. She opened her arms, tellin' Rose that everythin' was goin' to be fine from now on.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> I was originally going to make Rose and Bella not get along, but the way this one came out seems alright to me. Let me know what you think.


	7. Rosalie

**AN: **I know Rose's attitude change was quite sudden, I will be going back through and fixing things. Here is a chapter to sort of explain why Rose changed her tune so quickly, if that helps. This is my first time writing and posting anything, so you'll have to bear with me. I don't have anyone to check what I'm posting so everything is my mistake.

_Rosalie's POV:_

Ever since we left Bella, my family has been in hell. Carlisle just goes to work or sits in his study, and Esme submerged herself in decorating the house. Jasper was forced out of the family because Alice said they weren't mates, and couldn't stand to 'babysit' him any longer. Edward would sit and brood, and act like the world was crumbling down around him. My Emmett wouldn't joke around, or play his games, he said that without his baby sisters, life just seemed too dull and boring, and he didn't feel that it was right to leave her. Me on the other hand, I may have acted like I never liked her, but in reality I truly did. She was sweet, and caring, and never had a mean thing to say about anyone. She tried to be friends with me, but I just couldn't find it in my heart to get close to her when I knew for a fact that Edward was going to do something stupid like this.

You see, no one in the family knows a little secret of mine, not even Edward. I can tell when someone is being untruthful to me. Whenever someone lies to me, I get this niggling feeling in the back of my head that tells me they are lying. So, every time Edward would say that he loved her, and that she was his mate, my little 'gift' would tell me he was lying, so I never got close to Bella because I knew he'd want to leave her.

When Jasper was forced out of the house, things got even worse around here with everyone. It was after Jasper was forced to leave that Alice had a vision of Bella jumping off a cliff, and then her future went black. I never understood why Alice would continue to look for Bella when she hated Bella, and when she knew that Edward was always lying. Even though Edward wasn't really in love with Bella, he went to Volterra and had the Volturi kill him. I'll never understand why he did it, and I don't really care. Ever since I woke to this life, he was nothing but mean and cruel to me, always bringing up how I was changed and why, like it was a game to him. I know that in human years, I'm only a year older than him, but I honestly think that Carlisle changed him too young, but you can never tell Carlisle anything like that without him getting angry.

When Edward committed suicide, Carlisle and Esme became worse about avoiding everyone else, and Alice flipped her lid. Carlisle was always at the hospital, only coming home when they forced him, and then he'd just sit around staring off into space. He wouldn't speak to anyone, not even Esme. With him always at the hospital, Esme would be gone for hours at a time, coming home only to pick something up and change then she'd be out the door again, barely even acknowledging anyone at home. Alice kept blanking out, going into visions that she wouldn't tell anyone else about. She'd get this maniacal gleam in her eyes and start prancing around the house.

It was one of those times that I knew things weren't what everyone thought they were. Alice had gotten a vision that seemed to piss her off and she ran off with her cell phone. Unbeknownst to her, I followed her, keeping a safe distance from her so she wouldn't catch my scent. She ran about 50 miles from the house, well out of ear shot of the house and called someone. With our enhanced hearing I heard both sides of the conversation.

"**What do you want Alice, I'm trying to get the job done that you wanted me to!"** The other caller said, I knew I'd heard the voice before, but I couldn't place who it was unless Alice said their name.

"**Yes, I can see that, but what I don't understand is why you keep going blank, and why the job hasn't been completed yet."** Alice seethed. I was intrigued, and nervous. What job was she talking about? And her visions going blank was a shock, as far as I knew, the only person that was able to block her was Jasper's friend, Peter, but I always thought that Jasper and Peter stopped talking when he joined the family.

"**I don't know why I keep going blank. All I know is that stupid human broke down on the side of the road, and when I went to grab her, apparently there was a man helping her fix her truck and came after us. I had to drop the girl and run or else he would have killed me. He had marks all over him. I never knew he was there either!"** The other caller screeched, and it was then that I realized who it was; Peter Whitlock.

Alice growled and kicked a tree over, thank God it wasn't the tree I was in, or else she would have found me out. When she spoke again, it was like she was someone totally different. **"You had better get that stupid bitch and soon Victoria, or else your death will be slow and painful. That bitch is the reason my true mate is dead, and I want her to pay not only for my mate, but for your mate as well. Isabella Swan must die!"** With that, Alice slammed her phone shut, nearly breaking it in half.

When she ran off in the other direction of the house, I took off back to the house deep in though. I was thoroughly shocked and appalled at Alice, why would she say that Bella was the cause of her mate being dead, unless she was talking about Edward. Oh my God, she was talking about Edward! That's why they would always go hunting together, and acted like more than brother and sister!

Wait, if she's sent Victoria to kill Bella, then that means that she didn't die, but why can't she see Bella? Oh that's right, apparently Bella is with Peter, but what is she doing with him, he's a human drinker, and she's so accident prone that he's liable to kill her.

When I got back to the house, I ran up to my room and started packing all the clothes and stuff I couldn't part with and took them to Emmett's truck, hiding them. I wasn't about to tell the family we were leaving and not coming back. I never even planned anything so Alice wouldn't see it. All I decided to do was take a short little vacation with my husband. I knew that I had to tell Emmett what was going on, he's been so lost and depressed since he thought that Bella was dead. Maybe with the news that she was with Peter, and still alive things would start changing with him.

"Hey Emmett, do you want to go take a short vacation with me?" I asked him sweetly when I walked into the game room. Giving him a soft smile.

He nodded and turned off the TV he was watching. "Sure, where do you want to go this time?" I could hear the dejection in his voice, and knew that he really didn't want to go, but was going so he could make me happy.

I walked up to him, wrapping my arms around his waist. "How about we head south for a while, you haven't been to your family's area in a while."

He thought about it for a few minutes, shrugging his shoulders, "Sure, sounds good to me. Did you already pack for us?"

My smile got slightly bigger as I nodded, "Yup, it's all packed and in your jeep, just waiting for us to go. I wrote a note to Carlisle and Esme, and I'm sure Alice has already seen that we're leaving for a bit." I grabbed his hand and started walking towards the door.

He grabbed his keys and walked out the door, a small smile gracing his beautiful face.

When we had gotten far enough away from the house, he finally turned to me, raising an eyebrow. "So you want to tell me what this is really all about, or what?" He asked, I should have known he would have seen right through my ruse to get away from the family for a while.

I giggled softly, turning in my seat to watch his reactions. "I heard Alice on the phone earlier, what I'm going to say is both good and bad, so I need you to make sure you are calm." I told him in a serious voice. When he nodded in acceptance, I took a deep breath, preparing to both mend his heart and break it at the same time. "Alice has completely flipped her shit. Edward was her true mate, so she's pissed that he's dead because of Bella. The good part is, Bella is still alive." I saw him look at me sharply, gauging if I was telling the truth or not. "That's not the only thing, apparently Alice has been working with Victoria to attempt to kill Bella." He growled, tightening his grip on the steering wheel. I reached over and grabbed his right hand, pulling it into my lap and holding tightly. "Victoria hasn't been able to get to Bella though. Apparently Bella was off on some road when her truck broke down. Victoria thought it would be the perfect opportunity to kill her, but what Victoria didn't anticipate was that Bella had a southern gentleman helping her. It was a vampire, and Jasper's friend Peter that was helping her. Since he doesn't have a scent, Victoria thought that Bella was alone. When she grabbed Bella, Peter went after them and Victoria dropped Bella and ran. I don't know where Bella is right now, that part wasn't said. Seems as if Alice can't see Bella, so I'm guessing that she's still with Peter, but I could be wrong."

By the end of my little speech, Emmett's eyes were black with rage, but he was keeping himself as calm as possible. "I can't believe that little pixie would do something like this! How dare she try and hurt my little sister and my brother like that. I can't believe that we all went along with her like her word was law. I knew something was up when she agreed with Edward about leaving Bells so quickly. But it all makes sense now that you've told me. I wish we knew where she was, I miss her so much." By the end of his rant, his voice was nothing more than a whisper, and it broke my heart to see him in so much pain.

We'd been on the road for a while now, Emmett wanted to go towards Montana for a while, and just drive around and try and calm down, which I was fine with. I was just glad to be away from the suffocation that was the Cullen household. Now I felt like I was able to breath without worrying about anyone jumping down my throat for anything, or going with Alice on one of her unneeded shopping trips.

We'd been here in the motel for a few days now, having been gone from the house for about a week or so when Emmett's phone rang with an unknown number. I had told him after telling him about Alice not to make any decisions or tell anyone where we were, so we were both shocked that his phone would ring with an unknown number. When he answered it though, he and I both smiled.

"**Hello?" **I could hear the cautious tone of Emmett's voice, he was trying to make himself believable in not knowing anything in preparation that it was Alice.

"**Hey Em. What's going on?"** Jasper asked, I could hear that he was trying to suppress a smile, and act like we were still friend and family, but I knew that he felt we betrayed him by kicking him out of the family but still wanted him around so he didn't slip up.

"**Not much, just Rosie and I are traveling around a bit. Alice has been going crazy the last week or so."** I smiled softly at him, to let him know that I was fine with him telling Jasper part of what was going on. We all knew that when Alice told Jasper to leave that he broke his heart, and hopefully hearing that Alice was going crazy would make him feel slightly better.

"**Why don't you and Rose come down to Texas. I've got quite a surprise for ya."** If it was at all possible, I think Emmett's smile just lit up the entire room. He knew that if Jasper left the family that he'd go to his brother's house, and since we were thinking that Bella was possibly there, we knew that things would probably be getting better for us.

"**What's the surprise?"** Emmett asked, making me shake my head. My poor husband couldn't stand to be out of the loop, and was just like Bella in that he didn't like surprises very much.

"**I can't tell you that, just know that you'll love it when you get your ass down here."** When he said that, I went around the motel gathering our stuff and packing it back in the bags and calling the front desk telling them that we were checking out.

"**Alright, we'll be there in a couple days. You better not be fucking with me about this surprise Jasper, or I'll kick your ass."** I chuckled softly to myself, knowing that Emmett was excited at the possibility of seeing Bella again. Even I was a little happy about it. Although I wasn't sure how to act around her. Not sure if I should keep acting like a bitch, or should come clean it about it all and hopefully build a friendship with her.

"**Alright Em, see ya soon."** Jasper spoke, I could hear the familial love in his voice and knew that he missed us just as much as we missed him. I was bound and determined to get passed this, and become family once again.

As soon as they hung up, Emmett whipped around, smiling softly at me. "Do you think the surprise is Bells?" I could hear the hopefulness in his voice, and I smiled back.

"It's possible. If Alice can't see Victoria sometimes, and with Peter being the only one that we've ever known Alice to not be able to see, and with Jasper always going to his house if he's having problems or whatever, I can probably think that Bella's there." I said, sitting down on the edge of the bed. I hung my head slightly, still trying to work things out when Emmett came and sat next to me, wrapping an around around my shoulders. "What if she's there and doesn't want anything to do with me Em? I was so mean to her." Emmett was the only one that ever saw this side of me. No one else saw the vulnerable little girl I could be on the inside.

"Babe, you were only mean to her cause you saw how bad Eddie was. You are the only one who knew what he was doing, and you were trying to save her. You also saw her as a weak little girl who couldn't, and wouldn't, stand up for herself. I'm sure she's changed in the last 5 years, if she's been on the run from Victoria all this time, I'm sure she's probably gained a backbone as well. We'll just have to wait and see. I'm sure if you are your standard bitchy self when we get there, we'll find out more information though." He grinned cheekily at me, causing me to laugh.

"You're right, I'll just act like normal, and go from there. Let's go." I grabbed his hand and we walked out to the Jeep so we could head to Texas and be reunited with Jasper, and hopefully Bella.

It was mostly just quiet, both of us lost in our own thoughts as we drove. When we got closer to Texas, and Peter's house there, I could feel the nervousness creeping up. This would be the test of time, this would be one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I would love to have Bella has a sister, and have Jasper back as a brother, but I was scared that she'd take one look at me, and tell me to go burn in hell for all eternity.

I could tell Emmett was a ball of nerves as well, but wasn't talking about anything. As we got to where Peter lived, I could detect a faint scent of burnt vampire, and strawberries and cream in the air. I immediately looked at Emmett in alarm, we hadn't heard anything else from Jasper, and we thought the worst had happened; that Victoria got to them, and somehow bested Jasper. That caused me to get angry, how could anyone best Jasper in a fight, other than Peter, but I knew that Peter wouldn't do anything to his brother.

As we got closer, I could hear a soft thrumming sound, and knew it was Bella, but I was still on guard. When I smelled Jasper outside, I relaxed slightly, but put my defenses up to show that I was angry about Bella being here. As I stepped out of the truck, and Jasper got a taste of my emotions, I saw him straighten up and tense for a fight.

As soon as I got in front of him, I glared at him. "I thought the human had died, and that was why Edward killed himself." I hated lying to Jasper, but I had to figure things out.

I saw Jasper roll his eyes, "Still as bitchy as usual, huh Rosalie?" He knew I hated being called that, and was doing it to piss me off more.

"Why yes, I am, are you going to explain the situation or not?" I flipped my hair over my shoulder in my standard 'Bitchy Rose' move. "Jesus Jasper, you lost Alice, and Edward leaves her in the hopes of her returning to a normal life, and you just at the first change you can to find her and bring her home?" I growled, even though I really didn't want to.

"Now you listen here Rosalie Lillian Hale, you don't know the shit that she's been through for the last five years. You don't know what your _'brother'_ did to her. You don't know anything, so back the fuck off or get the fuck out." He growled back, and I stood there for a moment before answering, knowing that I couldn't give it away that I was happy she'd been found and was still alive.

"Oh I know plenty Jasper Whitlock. I know that Edward died thinking that Bella was dead, I know that Alice was heartbroken that her brother basically killed himself, that her husband left, and that he best friend wasn't around any longer." I hissed, hating myself even more for what was spewing forth out of my mouth. The next thing I know, Bella comes storming into the room, a cast on her right foot, but she acted like she didn't even feel a thing.

"Now wait just a god damn minute Rosalie! What Edward did when he thought I was dead is his own god damn fault, not mine, nor Jasper's. Fuck you Rosalie, you don't know HALF of what I've been through because you and your stupid coven. Your '_brother'_ and '_sister'_ raped me the day he left me. Edward ripped my clothes off, while Alice held my hands so I couldn't fight to get way. I'm glad Edward is dead, but I'm still haunted by nightmares of the day he fucking violated me! You have absolutely no right to come into this house and started barking out your disgust for me, if you have something to fucking say, say it to my face bitch or as Jasper said, get the fuck out!" Bella glared at me, crossing her arms over her chest. I was stunned momentarily speechless. I never knew what happened, and it sickened me to think that Edward and Alice did that to her. I still had to keep up the charade of being a bitch.

"You stupid little human, you think that just because you had one Cullen, you want to go after another one?" I started stalking towards her, making everyone thing I was going to hurt her. I had to push her to see if she was telling the truth. I heard both Peter and Jasper growl at me, but I wasn't worried about them.

"It's alright boys, she wouldn't dare touch me, because she knows she'd have the Major on her ass quicker then Emmett can pull his head out of his own ass." She looked at them, grinning softly before turning back towards me. "No Rosalie, I don't expect to be with a Cullen, or even around anymore Cullen's. If you haven't noticed, it's Whitlock around here bitch, so get to steppin' if you can't obey the rules of this house." Bella had balls, never once had I see a human stand up to me like that. No one has ever done that, and it made me respect her more. She wasn't letting Jasper or Peter fight her battles for her, and internally I was jumping for joy.

"So this is how it is Jasper, you're just going to turn your back on us for some stupid, pathetic human? I've been your sister for longer than she's been alive." I flipped my hair again, glaring at the three of them protecting each other.

The next words out of Jasper's mouth cut me deep. "Fuck you Rosalie, you are no longer my sister. You stopped being my sister when I**_FORCED_** out of the Cullen house. I thought we could at least be friends, maybe try and salvage things between us, but I see that Alice has you poisoned as well. Peter has been my brother longer than YOU'VE been alive there Miss Prissy-bitch. Get the fuck out of our house now. Or I'll remove you." He growled, glaring at us, causing me to flinch. Never have I been on the receiving end of Jasper's wrath. But I wasn't going to back down.

"Fine, pick the weak, stupid human over us." I stated as I began turning around. I wasn't really going to leave, but I wanted them to think I was.

Bella started speaking, "Oh wait, send a message to your precious family." As I turned around, I saw Bella smirking, causing me to raise an eyebrow at her. "Tell them, I'm coming." She then growled at me, it was this little human growl and I nearly busted out laughing but held it firmly inside.

"Oh yes, we're scared of the human psycho." I rolled my eyes, scoffing at her. The next thing I knew, Bella was standing directly in front of me, making me rethink saying that to her.

"You want to fuck with me Rosalie Hale?" Her voice dropped and was so calm I could feel the fear seeping out of me. "Want me to have Emmett take back your asses to your _'parents'_, or shall I just dump them in the fucking creek?" She growled again, and I could tell she was absolutely serious. I was actually slightly afraid of this human girl.

"I'll tell the family, but you don't dare threaten me human. I'm not scared of you." I was thankfully able to keep the fear out of my voice and keep from quivering. When I said I wasn't scared, Bella started laughing like a maniac, causing the 4 vampires in the room to look at each other, Jasper and Peter were looking at her with amusement, while Emmett and I were looking at her with looks of bewilderment.

She stopped laughing, and looked at me with a hard, steely look in her eyes. "Wanna know something bitch?" She asked, getting closer to me, causing me to step back. "I can promise you right now, I will be changed, and once I am, I will be coming after you and your family. You can either stay here, learn about things you have never heard of, and deal with me, or you and Emmett can leave with your tail between your legs, running back to mommy and daddy crying. You make the choice right now." She said, crossing her arms over her chest again, glaring at us and waiting on a response.

I never got the chance to say anything, because my bear of a husband beat me too it. "Damn Bells, you got balls!" He bellowed, I smiled softly, seeing him finally happy again, and making jokes. He stepped around me, looking at both Jasper and Peter, who nodded, then looking at Bella who smiled sweetly and nodded. Next thing we know, he swooped her up into one of his famous bear hugs and twirled her around. "God I've missed you so much Bella. I'm so sorry for listening to them and not following my heart." He whispered. The emotions in his voice were getting to me, and I looked away, knowing without a doubt that we'd be staying, hopefully for a while. I needed to make amends and show both Bella and Jasper that I wasn't as bitchy as I made out to be.

"Em, it's alright, I understand, and I'm glad you all left, it gave me a chance to grow up and figure out what I wanted in my life." She had her arms wrapped around his neck, hugging him back with all her human might.

When he let her down, all eyes looked at me, and I knew it was now or never. I knew that in order to prove myself to them, I had to show who I really was, and stop being so bitchy. "Bella, I'm sorry. I only said those things because I thought that you were out to destroy us. I can see now that we're the ones that destroyed you. If you can find it in your hear to forgive me, I'd like to start fresh." I looked down, showing them all that I wasn't going to be a bitch anymore. I heard 2 sharp intakes of breath, knowing it was probable Jasper and Peter. Emmett knew how I felt, so he wasn't surprised. I was thinking that maybe Bella wouldn't believe me, and send me on my way since she hadn't spoke or moved any.

Next thing I know, I hear her walking towards me, her scent enveloping me as she got closer. "It's fine Rosalie, I can understand why you acted the way you did. I forgive you." I looked up sharply, wondering if she really meant it. She opened her arms, granting me permission to start fresh and get my little sister back. I was so excited, I smiled softly at her, stepping into her arms. When she wrapped her arms around me, she whispered in my ear low enough to where I was the only one to hear her.

"You acted like that because of what happened to you, I completely understand, and hope that you will help me get over my fears sister. I've always loved you, and I always will." When she said that, my walls came down, hitting Jasper like a brick wall. He snapped his head towards me, quirking an eyebrow at me but smiling nonetheless. I finally had my family, and I wasn't going to give them up for anything, no matter who or what said to. They were here to stay.


	8. Building Bridges

**AN:** Thanks to everyone that's reviewed, or put this story on alert. It has made me feel completely wonderful and excited to post more. You guys are all awesome! I own nothing!

Bella's POV:

After my blow up with Rosalie, she softened some, but I could tell there was something else she wasn't tell us. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it was like she was scared to say anything about it. I'll let her come to be about it if she wants to, I'm not going to pressure her into talking abut it.

We all went into the living room, mostly for my benefit since I wasn't a vampire who could stand forever, plus with my broken foot that was starting to hurt from walking around on it. Peter must have known I was hurting because he picked me up and carried me into the living room, sitting me on the couch and sitting down next to me. Jasper sat down on the floor at me feet, kind of protecting me or something. It made me feel kind of special to know that both Peter and Jasper were keeping me safe, just like they promised.

"So, Bella, what are you doing here?" Emmett asked, breaking the silence we'd all lapsed into.

I looked at Peter, who has tensed slightly at his question. I raised an eyebrow at him wondering if he was alright, and he nodded. I turned back to Emmett and took a deep breath.

"I'm here because Peter saved my life. My truck broke down on the side of this back country road close by, and he was returning from hunting and saw me. He was trying to fix the truck when Victoria grabbed me and ran into the woods. She wasn't paying very close attention and my foot in a tree, breaking it. When she heard Peter following her, she just dropped me and ran. Peter didn't want to chase after her, so he came back for me, picked me up and put me in the truck and drove here. Jasper came a day later. Then he called you and now here we are." I said, never taking my eyes off him as I spoke.

I heard Emmett growl softly and take a deep, unneeded breath before speaking again. "I'm glad you are alright Bella." He looked so sad when he was talking, but I tried to ignore it. "We were told that you..." I decided to cut him off before he said anything more.

"Yes, yes, you were told I jumped off a cliff, committed suicide, and then he killed himself. Whatever, I was cliff-diving with friends; you know, the Quillete tribe in La Push? Yes, they are shape-shifters, so the pixie-whore couldn't see them, which in turn means she can't see me." I giggled softly, and I saw Peter smirk from the corner of my eye. I had yet to hear Rosalie speak, she was just sitting there quietly, watching and listening to the conversation.

I saw Emmett look towards Rosalie, but she shook her head, and it made me wonder what they were silently talking about, but I ignored that when Jasper spoke.

"What's going on with you two? You've been hiding something, and I want to know what it is." I felt him tense up, like he was gearing up for a fight or something. I placed a hand on his shoulder, letting him know that everything was fine.

Rosalie's head snapped towards Jasper, "Nothing." She said quickly, tensing up as well.

I narrowed my eyes at her, "Oh I think you are lying Rosalie, and I suggest you tell us." I said, knowing for a fact that she was lying and hiding things from us.

She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Fine. I overheard a conversation Alice had with Victoria. She was gunning for you something fierce. Telling Victoria that you had to die, that she should learn to do her job properly or something. Saying that you were the reason her true mate was dead, as well as James." She blurted out, turning her face away from us.

I started laughing hysterically. To think that Edward was Alice's true mate was funny as hell. The 100 year old prude, and the short midget looking boy were mates, oh that's funny. The four vampires in the room were looking at me as if I'd completely lost my marbles, and maybe I had, but I couldn't help but laugh.

When I finally stopped laughing, I looking at Peter and Jasper, still trying not to laugh anymore. "The 100 year old prude with the midget boy." As soon as I said that, they both laughed loudly. Even Rosalie and Emmett laughed. When everyone sobered up, they all turned to me, both Jasper and Peter knowing I was fine, but Emmett and Rosalie thought I was going to go crazy by the looks on their faces.

"I'm not going to go crazy." I seethed at them, causing them both to look sheepishly at me. "And for the record, Victoria has been taken care of." I stated simply.

"How?" Rosalie asked, raising an eyebrow.

I rolled my eyes, sighing. "Do you not see who is sitting next to me, and in front of me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow back at her.

She nodded, looking down in her lap like a chastized child. I smirked slightly before my stomach growled. Peter grinned and shook his head slightly, "Time for the human to eat. I'll be right back with ya somethin'." He said before getting up and finding me some food.

I looked back and Emmett and Rosalie, wondering if they truly knew how crazy Alice was, or if they had absolutely no idea at all. I decided to breech the subject after I ate whatever it was that Peter was bringing me.

I could see the remaning 3 vampires in the room start to fidget, and I smirked again at seeing how uncomfortable they all truly were. "Are you all just going to sit there staring at each other or random things, or are you all going to speak? You've been family for a while now, and just sitting around not talking about things is just plain uncomfortable." I felt Jasper shaking slightly in silent chuckles while Emmett and Rosalie grinned at me and my bluntness. I even heard Peter laughing from the kitchen, more than likely shaking his head in amusement.

"Japser, I want to apologize for what happened. I know it wasn't all my fault, but I feel like I betrayed you by letting them do that to you, and not standing up for you. I'm so sorry." I heard Rosalie say, and the emotion in her voice showed me that she was truly sorry for how she behaved towards Jasper.

"I'm not going to lie Rose, you and Emmett turning me out like that hurt more than anything. I knew Alice wasn't my mate, I even knew that Carlisle and Esme didn't really care about me, they were just glad to have a Seer in their coven. They had the perfect ones too apparently. They had a mind reader, and a psychic, they really had no use for me, so I was shoved to the background. They were able to do that since I was so new to the diet. I know all about y'all sending your bloodlust to me whenever a bleeding human was nearby, I also know a lot about Alice that you all were find fearful if you knew the truth. You two were my family, I considered you two the only people who wouldn't betray me, and you proved me wrong." Jasper stated, the last part was hard for him to say, since it was nothing more than a whisper.

Peter had come in by then, handing me a plate with a sandwich on it, a glass of Dr. Pepper, and a pain killer. I smiled gratefully at him, but keeping silent while Jasper and his other family tried to work things out.

"Jazz, I'm sorry. I wasn't aware of all that. I knew that they were all lying, but I couldn't prove anything. I tried, believe me I did! I never wanted to kick you out, but when I made the decision to side with you, Alice cornered me after a hunt telling me that if I sided with you, you'd wind up going on a killing spree and kill the entire town and anyone who was around." I saw the venom tears in her eyes, and how utterly heartbroken she seemed. Emmett wrapped an arm around her trying to comfort her as best as he could.

I heard and felt Jasper growl at that, knowing he was sick and tired of Alice all the time lying on him. I placed a hand on his shoulder and leand down to whisper in his ear to where only he could hear it. "Jazz, it's over with, she is no longer in your life, and she can't see anything you do. They are here now, make up with them. Get your family back together. We'll get our revenge on the pixie seer soon big brother." I felt him relax and nod. I looked around at his face and saw a big smile on his face and I leaned back, acting kind of smug. Both Rosalie and Emmett were looking between Jasper and I, probably wondering how I was able to calm him down so easily. The next time they looked at me, they looked like they were going to say something, but I narrowed my eyes and shook my head no at them. They kept quiet, thank goodness.

I felt Jasper take a deep breath and turn back to them. "Well, obviously Alice was wrong. I have been here with Peter for a while now, and I haven't gone on a town killing rampage, have I?" I saw them shake their heads at the same time, and I smiled. "And I haven't hurt Bella either. Why would I hurt my sister in any way?" I saw Emmett flinch slightly at that, and I grinned internally, serves him right. He doesn't get the privilage of calling me sister again for a while. "Alice was always a lying, manipulating bitch who used her visions for her own gain, and didn't care about anyone else. She was using Carlisle and Esme because of Edward, and their unlimited funds. She never truly cared about anyone, not even her true mate." Jasper shrugged, acting like it meant nothing to him at all. I knew part of him was still hurting and upset about it, but I wasn't going to tell anyone else that.

I saw Rosalie's shoulders sag again, "I wish I'd never listened to them. They are all manipulating each other, and they don't seem to care. Edward manipulated us into leaving Bella, Alice was manipulating everyone else. Even Carlisle and Esme were manipulating us, and none of us even realized it until it was too late. I wish I had done something more, something to stop it all." She sighed, looking down into her lap again. I decided it was time for me to speak up and voice what I thought of the whole thing.

"Rosalie, what would you have done had you known? They would have made you seem like you were out of your mind, and who knows, they might have tried to kill you. You couldn't have said anything. Also, how would you have known?" I raised an eyebrow at her, knowing she was hiding something else.

She looked at Emmett and I saw him nod slightly. "Well, I would have known, because I have a slight power." I saw Jasper look at her sharply, his body tensing again. She ignored him and continued. "I've always been able to tell when someone was lying to me. When both Alice and Edward would lie, I just thought it was about a vision that we weren't allowed to know. And when Carlisle and Esme would lie, I thought they were just hurting over everything, but I can see now that I was wrong. You're right Bella, I wouldn't have been bale to do anything because Alice and Edward would have made me out to be the bad guy."

"Exactly, so you did what any other person would have done in your situation. You are here now, trying to make amends. You've apologized, given your reasons for acting like you did to Jasper, and in my book, that's alright." I said as I popped the last bite of my sandwich in my mouth. She smiled softly at me, and nodded slightly.

I happened to glance at the clock and nearly spit my drink out. It was after 3am. Peter looked at me, and saw that I was looking at the clock and smiled sheepishly at me. I sighed softly, "Peter, can you take me up to the bathroom, I want to get a shower and then go on to bed. It's late." He nodded and stood up. Jasper had moved out of the way so Peter could grab me. I stood up and grabbed Jasper in a hug and smiled. "Love ya big brother." He smiled at me, kissing my cheek and send me off to shower and sleep.

Peter picked me up bridal style, smiling down at me when I wrapped my arms around his neck and rested my head on his shoulder. I wasn't sure what was going on between us, but I knew I felt safer with him than I did with anyone else. I was hoping that once the drama with Em and Rose was over with, Peter and I could sit down and talk about everything.

He took me into the bathroom and sat me on the counter, then he went and grabbed my bag for me with my clothes in it. I sighed, hating the fact that I couldn't shower without wrapping my foot up. Stupid Victora just had to go and break my foot didn't she? Peter came back, setting my back next to the tub as he began wrapping my foot, making so there were no holes for water to find while I showered. As soon as he was done, he picked me up, setting me on the side of the tub. As he was walking out, I said a soft thank you. He told me he'd be back when I called him to help me get into bed.

As soon as the door was shut, I stripped down and set the water to the right temperature and got in the tub. The hot water felt good on my tense muscles. I sighed softly in relief and began my shower routine, thinking back on everything that was said downstairs but shook the thoughts out of my head, telling myself that I'd think about it all tomorrow.

Once I finished washing myself, I turned the water and carefully stepped out of the tub, wrapping a towel around my body and one around my hair. One fully dry I dressed in my sweats and long sleeve t-shirt. I sat down on the closed toilet and called for Peter.

"Peter, can you come put me in bed please?" I said in a normal voice, sleepyness full in my voice.

Within a flash, he was standing before me, smiling softly at me. I stood up and wrapped my arms around his neck again as he picked me up. I snuggled in his arms, already ready to fall into oblivion when he gently placed me on the bed, covering me. He started to pull back, but I wouldn't let him go, so I mumbled "Stay." and I heard him sigh softly before tucking the blankets in around me and got in the bed on top of the covers. When he finally laid down, I snuggled closer to him, closing my eyes and letting the darkness take me over, all thoughts of the remaining vampires downstairs out of my mind. They could wait till tomorrow.


	9. Together Again

**AN:** It's taken me a bit to get this chapter done just right. Jasper's POV seems to be the hardest one to write, but I felt like he needed to express how he felt after learning what Rose and Emmett knew. I own nothing! :)

_**Jasper POV**_

Sitting here, hearing how everything turned out in the Cullen family after I left, and even before I left made me so damn angry I wanted to thrash something. When Bella leaned down and spoke to me, it made me realize that I've got a new family, and a better life, so I let it all go. When Rose said she had a 'slight gift' that let her know when someone was lying, I nearly lost it again. How could she lie to everyone, how could she lie to me? I thought we were closer than that. Shows just how much she trusts me with things like this. That's alright, I don't really trust her anymore after what they did to me.

When Bella asked Peter to take her upstairs to take a shower, I felt a burst of love so strong, that had I not been sitting down, it would have knocked me to my knees it was so strong. I moved out of the way so he could pick her up, and I felt Bella's emotions cycling through slight fear, love, comfort, acceptance, and more fear. I knew she'd have a hard time getting over what that asshole did, and I hope that Peter can help her. It would be good to see him happy again after Charlotte just up and walked out on him 30 years ago without a backward glance. Guess they've got that in common, which isn't the greatest thing to have in common with each other, but maybe they can help each other heal.

As soon as they were upstairs, I turned my attention back to Emmett and Rose, wondering if there was anything else they had to say with Bella being gone. I raised an eyebrow at them, silently telling them to go ahead and speak. I saw Rose look towards Emmett, and I was wondering what they were silently talking about. Finally, Emmett sighed, and acted like he was going to speak.

"Jazz, you know that things have always been strained at the Cullen house, but ever since you left it's like things have gotten worse. Carlisle doesn't talk to anyone, just goes to work and then when he is forced to go home, he will go sit in his study and not speak to anyone, not even Esme. And Esme is so wrapped up in her decorating business that she is hardly ever home. She'll go home only to change clothes, or get some new decorating plan." He took a deep, unneeded breath. "After Edward committed suicide, Alice just flipped. She started getting more and more visions that she wouldn't tell anyone about. She started leaving the house for hours at a time, saying she was going hunting, but I knew that was a lie since she'd already hunted recently. She kept getting this wicked evil glint in her eyes that would kind of freak me out. She became really un-Alice like. She didn't really want to shop, and if someone suggested it, she begrudgingly agreed. It's like she was possessed or something."

I sat there, thinking about everything they told me, and then about what Bella had told me earlier about how Alice was crazy. It all made perfect sense now that I got both sides of it. I just shrugged, "Not really my problem anymore, except when she comes after my sister. I don't care anymore about what Alice does, or doesn't do. Nor do I care about what Carlisle and Esme do. I was kicked out of the Cullen family like a piece of garbage, and everyone was so worried about my slipping up, that I was forced to keep in contact with them all."

Peter had come back downstairs for a few minutes, looking at the three of us and shook his head slightly. I wasn't sure what that was all about, I figured if he wanted us to know, he'd tell us. Next thing we know, Bella is calling him back, asking him to put her to bed. Rose and Emmett were listening intently, trying to figure out what was going on with Bella and Peter, and I smirked. When they heard Bella ask Peter to stay, I could see Emmett getting mad. His emotions were going through fear, self-loathing, and disgust. I looked at him, narrowing my eyes slightly. "What is your problem Emmett?" I hissed at him.

"What the fuck is she doing with him?" He hissed back, his emotions telling me he was trying to be an over-protective big brother.

"For your information, you trying to act like the big brother stops. You all abandoned her. You have no say so in her life whatsoever, so I suggest you cut that shit out. And she's with him, because he is the only one she truly trusts not to hurt her like your brother did." I growled out the last part. My eyes turning black with rage.

"You left her too Jasper, so why are you all big brotherly with her?" he asked, his emotions telling me he was trying to wedge his way into her life somehow. I knew that Emmett had missed her, and always saw her as a little sister, but the way he went about leaving her was what hurt her the most.

"I'm her big brother, because I protected her. I came here, and I begged her forgiveness, although she said I didn't need it. Did either of you ever think that the reason I kept slipping, or even lunged at Bella was because I'm an empath and I can feel you absorb your bloodlust?" I asked them, seeing their eyes widen. Seems Bella and I are the only ones that thought that. "Yes, so on Bella's birthday, I was feeling my own bloodlust, plus 6 others. And Edward's was the strongest since she was his singer! I would have been just fine had he not thrown her back into that table with all the plates." I shook my head, they were emitting shame and remorse, which I thought was a good thing, after everything they've done.

"We're sorry Jasper, we didn't realize that you were absorbing all our bloodlust and all that. I'm sorry we didn't believe you when you told us." Rose hung her head, emitting self-loathing and remorse. I knew they were truly sorry, and didn't know what was really going on, but it didn't stop me from feeling like I couldn't trust them.

I sighed softly, wondering how long this night was going to last. I didn't know if I could sit here with them the entire time Bella was asleep. I know I used to think of them as family and part of me always will, but they will have to earn my trust back and prove to me that they aren't going to go running off to the Cullen's after learning everything they wanted to when they showed up.

It was as if Rose knew exactly what I was thinking, because she spoke so softly. "We're not going to go back to them Jasper, unless you and Bella, and even Peter tell us to leave. I would like to get to know Bella properly, and I want to make things up to you. You didn't deserve what they did to you, and Bella didn't deserve to be brought into our world only for us to leave her. We should have protected her, and made sure she was always safe. I hate myself for leaving her without a backward glance, and for pushing you away like I did. I am so sorry, and I know I keep saying that, and I know you can probably feel it, but I truly mean it, I don't know how else to express it other than saying it. You were always my big brother, you were there for me when no one else was, except Em. I want to be the big sister to Bella, I want to show her that I truly mean it, and that I love her." She sighed, closing her eyes before speaking again. "I always thought of her as a sister deep down, but I had to keep it hidden from you and Edward. I wasn't sure what was going on, and I was afraid to get close to her. She was a human in a supernatural world, and I knew sooner or later, she'd either be killed by one of our kind, or she'd get hurt some other way. I'll never be able to truly express my sorrow and regret to her, or you."

I looked at her, sitting there with venom glistening in her eyes as tears that would never fall. I opened my arms to her, showing her that I did forgive her, but couldn't fully trust her. She rushed into my arms, gripping me tight as she let her dry sobs overcome her. I saw Emmett sitting there helpless; he wanted to help his mate, but he knew that nothing he did could help her truly heal after all that's happened.

I held her close, rubbing her back as she sobbed. I knew now that she was truly heartbroken with what we did to Bella, and how the family treated me and them. A little niggling part of me started to trust them again, but I knew I couldn't trust them fully. I needed more information, and more time and proof that they weren't going to betray us again.

After a while, Rose's sobs died down, and I happened to look at the clock and noticed it was a little after 10 in the morning. As soon as I thought about Bella waking up, I heard her heart start beating faster. I was praying that waking up next to Peter wouldn't scare her too bad and cause her to regress into the girl who was afraid of physical contact.

Rose and Emmett heard as well, and looked towards the ceiling, probably waiting on the inevitable freak out that they assumed she'd have. But Bella surprised us all. Her emotions stayed steady and content as she finished waking up. I heard her move closer to Peter, and him to chuckle softly. Bella's emotions shifted to happiness, love, contentment, and joy. I smiled softly, letting out a deep breath I didn't realize I had been holding. Rose and Emmett looked at me in question, but I just kept smiling at them, not telling them what was going on.

As we were sitting there, waiting on something to happen upstairs, Rose moved back to sit next to Emmett, leaving me on the couch by myself. I felt Bella's emotions leak out embarrassment, and heard her whisper a soft 'sorry'. Peter chuckled again, sitting up on the bed. The next words out of his mouth caused Emmett's head to snap towards the stairs.

"It's alright my Angel. Let's get you into the bathroom for your 'human needs', and I'll wait in the bedroom until your done to take you downstairs." He told her gently. It amazed me that one little human girl could make my human drinking brother turn to mush in a short amount of time, but I was happy that he'd found happiness after Charlotte left him. Just like he tried with me, I tried telling him that Charlotte wasn't his true mate, and like me, he didn't believe anything I said.

I guess Bella gave a nonverbal answer to Peter, because the next thing we know, she's running water, probably in an attempt to keep us super-hearing beings from hearing what she was doing. We all chuckled softly, but chose to ignore her until she came downstairs. As Peter went in an grabbed her, I felt Bella emit happiness, love and contentment. It looked like she was finally feeling the mating pull. Peter was refusing to tell her in fear that she'd go running for the hills away from him. He was letting her come to him about it if she felt anything.

Peter was walking at a human pace down the stairs when I saw them both. Peter was emitting pure love, joy, happiness, and adoration. I smiled at him softly and saw that Bella was snuggled into his embrace, her head resting on shoulder at the crook of his neck. Emmett and Rose were throwing out shock and bewilderment. They both knew that when a woman was raped, it was hard for the woman to get close to any man, but seeing Bella with Peter was a sight to behold. She actively sought out his touch and comfort anytime they were near each other, and I could tell by her emotions that when he wasn't around her, she started feeling the worthlessness, fear, disgust, hatred, abandonment, and self-loathing. She knew deep down that something was happening, but it seemed like she was afraid to admit it, not only to herself but to us as well. I wasn't going to push her, or make her do anything at all, I was just waiting for the day when she finally had enough and asked about what was going on. I knew she never felt these emotions with Edward, and I was glad for that.

When they got downstairs completely, Bella looked up and saw us all sitting how she left us last night and quirked an eyebrow at me. I smiled at her and shook my head, telling her that everything was alright. Peter brought her to the couch next to me and she smiled at me, reaching over and hugging me, "Good morning Jasper." She said as she kissed my cheek softly. I returned her hug, and smiled back.

"Morning Bella. Did you sleep well?" I asked, giving her a amused grin.

She rolled her eyes and giggled softly, "Yes, as if you lot didn't know."

Peter had run into the kitchen, and started cooking something for Bella to eat. It smelled awful to the rest of us, but as soon as the smell hit her nose, her stomach growled loudly, causing her to blush softly and us to chuckle.

Bella turned to glance at Rose and Emmett before looking at me, raising an eyebrow. I shrugged and nodded my head in their direction to see if Bella would talk to them herself. She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Fine. I would like to know what your intentions are. Whether you intend to stay here, with us, or are you going back to the Cullen's?" She blurted out. They both looked at her, shock the most dominate emotion they had, like they weren't expecting her to be so blunt and ask that.

"Uhm, well, we were wanting to stay here if it was alright with you three. We wanted to try and make amends for what we did." Bella scoffed at that, rolling her eyes. They both sighed softly, but didn't comment and kept talking. "We know we've wronged you and Jasper, and we are truly sorry and hope that one day you both can forgive us and let us show you that we aren't going to betray you or make you regret giving us a second chance." Rose finished speaking, holding tightly to Emmett's hand for support. Rose was not used to showing just how vulnerable she really was, and didn't like opening herself up to possible rejection like this.

Bella sat there thinking for a few minutes, and by the time her food was done and Peter came in with it, Bella decided to speak. "I can't speak for Peter or Jasper, but I will tell you both right now. You are welcome to stay, as long as you abide by the Whitlock rules. I can understand you wanting to make amends, and whatnot, but I will tell you, it's going to take a long time for me to trust either of you. When you left, it destroyed me. I was told I wasn't good enough for your family, that I was nothing more than a walking blood bag, and then brutally raped. If you think you understand that, then by all means go right ahead." She whispered the last part brokenly, Peter sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and she snuggled into him. She didn't speak for a while, focusing on keeping herself calm and eating some of the bacon and eggs Peter had fixed for her.

Rose and Emmett were sitting there, holding each other gently, absorbing what Bella was saying. They got angry when she said that she was told she was nothing more than a walking blood bag, and not good enough, and I could understand their anger, but I didn't understand why it pissed them off that bad. They left just like everyone else did.

When she finally regained her composure, she began speaking again. "I will tell you now Emmett, after you left, you no longer held the place of 'Brother' in my heart. That place is for Jasper now, maybe once you prove to us that you aren't going to go running off at the first sign of trouble, you could possibly be upgraded to brother again, but that is going to take a very long time to do. Rosalie, you were always a sister type to me, and like Emmett, you are going to have to work for the title. I'm not the same weak minded human you all left 5 years ago. You no longer will be able to walk all over me for your own personal gain, no matter what you say or do. Is that clear?" She spoke with such authority and determination that I was shocked. I don't think Rose and Emmett have ever had anyone tell them off like Bella has. Hell I don't even think Carlisle or Esme, the heads of the Cullen coven ever truly acted like adult role-models.

They both sat there still as statues for a few minutes, thinking over everything Bella said. Peter was radiating pride and smugness at his mates apparent leadership. He was always used to being the sole leader when he was with Charlotte, that now he's happy to have someone to share the role with.

"We agree Bella, and will do whatever you say we need to do. Thank you for giving us this opportunity, it means the world to us." Rose said while Emmett nodded in agreement.

Bella smirked, "Good, glad we understand each other. Now, how about you squirrel suckers go find something to suck on while the human here finishes eating." She giggled and started eating the rest of her food.

Rose, Emmett, and I chuckled and nodded, getting up and heading towards the back door to go to the woods to hunt. I was glad that Peter had found a mate like Bella. She was good for him, and he was good for her. I couldn't wait until she was changed and was able to take care of herself. This was making out to be a great thing that happened to us all.


	10. Acceptance

**AN: ** Thank you all for the reviews, story alerts, and favorites. It means the world to me. I own nothing! :)

**Peter POV:**

After everything that has gone on lately, with learnin' that Alice is behind the Victoria attacks, and that the Cullen's are basically fallin' apart at the seems, I had expected Bella to have some sort of human nervous breakdown, but she shocked the hell outta me. She was always calm and thought things through before speakin'. I swear, this human does nothin' that is expected of her.

As she slept the night before, I began thinkin' about how far she's improved since I found her. She doesn't look quite as skinny or as pale, and her attitude about things seems to have gotten better. She's been allowin' me to touch her, and she's been seekin' out my touch. It warms my cold, dead heart to know that she trusts me as much as she already does. She's even been lettin' Jasper touch her and help her.

While layin' with her, I heard Jasper talkin' to Emmett and Rose, and found out other stuff that I pretty much already knew. Emmett was thinkin' that just because he suddenly came back into my Angel's life, that he can automatically resume to role of 'Big Brother', but I hate to break it to him, he will never be her brother again if I have any say in it. Of course, I don't technically have any say in what she does, but I would hope that she wouldn't allow them back into her life without makin' them work for it.

Around 10 that mornin', Bella started wakin' up and I thought for sure she would freak out on me being in her bed, but she surprised the hell outta me by snugglin' further into my arms and sighin' softly. She didn't really speak, just laid there with my arms wrapped around her. She must not have been fully awake yet, because she threw her leg over mind, tanglin' out legs together. I smiled at this, knowin' that she would more than likely be embarrassed by this, but I said nothing. A few minutes later, she awoke fully, lookin' at our bodies all wrapped around each other and muttered a soft, 'sorry' before untanglin' herself from me.

I chuckled softly, "It's alright my Angel. Let's get you into the bathroom for your 'human needs', and I'll wait in the bedroom until your done to take you downstairs." I told her, helpin' her up and into the bathroom. Once there, I set her down and walked into the bedroom to wait. I didn't have to wait long though, and she called me in to take her downstairs.

As we got downstairs, I set Bella on the couch next to Jasper after hearin' her stomach growl loudly causin' us all to chuckle at her and her to blush. I went to the kitchen to cook her some food and heard Bella happily tell Jasper good mornin', kissin' his cheek and pretty much ignore the Cullen's presence. I heard him reply in kind and not one ounce of jealously was present. I knew he loved her like a little sister, and she loved him like a big brother. They were family and probably best friends.

It was awfully quiet in there for a while before Bella spoke, exasperation clear in her voice. "Fine. I would like to know what your intentions are. Whether you intend to stay here, with us, or are you going back to the Cullen's?" She just blurted that out without worryin' about pissin' anyone off. I love my girl for that. She isn't like most humans. Most humans would be quiverin' in fear around us, and here Bella is with 4 vampires, one a human drinker, and she doesn't even bat an eyelash at us.

I heard Rose clear her throat unnecessarily, "Uhm, well, we were wanting to stay here if it was alright with you three. We wanted to try and make amends for what we did." I rolled my eyes, wondering if Bella believes this garbage.

Apparently Bella didn't believe it either, because I heard her scoff, but she didn't interrupt Blondie as she finished speakin'. "We know we've wronged you and Jasper, and we are truly sorry and hope that one day you both can forgive us and let us show you that we aren't going to betray you or make you regret giving us a second chance."

It was quiet again for a few minutes, and I let my mind wonder as I finished makin' Bella's breakfast. As soon as it was plated, I heard Bella begin speakin' to them. "I can't speak for Peter or Jasper, but I will tell you both right now. You are welcome to stay, as long as you abide by the Whitlock rules. I can understand you wanting to make amends, and whatnot, but I will tell you, it's going to take a long time for me to trust either of you. When you left, it destroyed me. I was told I wasn't good enough for your family, that I was nothing more than a walking blood bag, and then brutally raped. If you think you understand that, then by all means go right ahead." The last part broke my heart and when I walked into the livin' room, I sat down next to her, placin' her food on the table and pullin' her close into my side. She snuggled into me, and ate a few bites of the food and calmed herself down before speaking again.

As she started speaking again, I watched Emmett and Rosalie closely, judgin' if we had anything to worry about. "I will tell you now Emmett, after you left, you no longer held the place of 'Brother' in my heart. That place is for Jasper now, maybe once you prove to us that you aren't going to go running off at the first sign of trouble, you could possibly be upgraded to brother again, but that is going to take a very long time to do. Rosalie, you were always a sister type to me, and like Emmett, you are going to have to work for the title. I'm not the same weak minded human you all left 5 years ago. You no longer will be able to walk all over me for your own personal gain, no matter what you say or do. Is that clear?" She spoke with such authority and was clear about how she was feelin', and I was so damn proud of her. Proud to call her my mate and the love of my life for all eternity.

After Rosalie and Emmett agreed, Bella made a joke and told the 'squirrel suckers' to go hunt. It caused us all to crack up laughin' but they got up and left anyways. I heard Bella sigh softly as she finished her breakfast.

"What's wrong Angel?" I asked, turnin' more towards her to talk.

"It's nothing, just thinking about some things." She said, not meetin' my eyes. I knew something was botherin' her, but I didn't know why she wouldn't talk about it.

"You can talk to me Darlin', about anything at all, you know that right?" I asked softly, not sure how to deal with a situation like this.

She took a deep breath, closin' her eyes. I wanted to reach other and hold her close to me, but I was afraid that if I did that, she'd retreat back into herself and wouldn't talk to me, so I sat perfectly still and waited on her to start speakin'. "I know that I feel a pull to Jasper, but it's just as a sister would her brother. I love him as if he was my own flesh and blood, which is odd considering I was never able to be around him while we were both with the Cullen's. What I don't understand is what's going on with you and me." She blurted it out quickly.

I closed my eyes, not wantin' her to see the emotions shiftin' through. I always knew this moment would come, where she would feel the connection, but I didn't think it would be this soon. I took a deep, unnecessary breath, opening my eyes to look at her carefully. "Darlin', what all where you told about vampires and how they find their true loves?" I asked, feelin' that it would be safer to ease into this conversation rather than just blurt it out like I normally would. I had to do this right, and make sure she understood everything.

She furrowed her brow, clearly thinkin' back to what she was told all those years ago. "Well, I was told that when a vampire finds their mate, it's as if the world falls away and she is the only thing that could possibly mean anything to them." She kinda shrugged, stoppin' to think again. "The only mated couples I saw, or what I thought I saw, was Jasper and Alice, but obviously you see that didn't work out. Then Emmett and Rosalie, and it seems as if they are truly bonded and are really mates. Lastly, Carlisle and Esme. It always seemed as if they just were together for the convenience of it and not truly in love, but I never questioned it. I always thought that was how mates were." She turned her cute little scrunched up face towards me, "Why do you ask Peter?"

I figured it was now or never, either I tell her the truth and have her possibly run screamin' from me, or lie to her and have her find out later that I lied and have her run screamin' from me. I decided that it would be better all around for everyone if I just told her. "Bella, what you said is partially true, findin' your mate is like that. It's very intense and it does feel as if the world falls away, leavin' the only thing that would ever mean anything in the world to see. When a vampire finds their mate, they are willin' to protect their mate at all costs, they feel the need to constantly be touchin' or around their mate. It feels as if a giant hole has been opened in your body if you are away from your mate for very long, and the pain from that hole will get gradually worse the longer you are away." I knew this next part was going to be hard for her to hear and she more than likely wouldn't believe it.

"Wait, so you are telling me, that if a vampire was mated, let's say to a human, and said vampire left the human alone, that the vampire would be in pain, and so would the human?" She asked softly. I could tell she was thinkin' about her and Edward, and I'll admit, it sparked a massive wave of jealously in me, but I knew that he was dead, and wouldn't be comin' back, so I attempted to settle down some so I could answer her.

"Yes, if a vampire and human were mated, and the vampire left the human, the human wouldn't have lasted long without the vampire. The human body, as you know, is weaker than a vampires, so it would have essentially killed the human to be away from their mate for so long." I was hopin' and prayin' that everything went ok. I couldn't lose her, not now that I've finally found her.

"Oh." Was the only thing she said for a while. It scared the shit outta me to think that she'd run away from me now that she partially knew. "So what you're basically saying is that, had I been Edward's mate, he wouldn't have been able to leave me without essentially killing me. So he wasn't my mate, just made me believe he was. He used me, broke me, and threw me away like yesterday's garbage." I could smell the tears in her eyes, and it broke my heart. She shouldn't possibly still love him after everything he did to her.

"Yes, that's what I'm sayin'." I didn't feel like I could say more, I desperately needed her to figure this out on her own, to figure out that I'm her mate and not be afraid anymore.

We both sat there in silence, lost in our own thoughts for a while. I knew Jasper and the other wouldn't be back for a while, so I wasn't too worried about them comin' in and interruptin' us, so I let her sit there and think about it all.

"Wait, you said that when a vampire finds their mate, they are constantly wanting to touch the mate, and be near them, and protect them, right?" She turned and looked at me, her eyes wide and slightly fearful. I could only nod my head, unable to speak out of the fear of rejection. "Oh my god." She whispered, nearly so low I couldn't hear it.

I swallowed back the venom that had gathered in my mouth, tryin' to gather my own courage to speak. "What?" I asked, also in a whisper.

Her eyes never left mine as she spoke, "I'm your mate." She didn't phrase it as a question, just merely a statement. Her eyes grew impossibly wider as her heart started to beat frantically in her chest, her breathin' becomin' erratic also. Again, I could only nod my head, my body tense and waitin' on her rejection.

"Oh god Peter... Why me? You deserve someone so much better than me. I'm nothing but a blubbering, broken shell of a person. I'm not worthy to be a mate to anyone!" She started rantin' and rockin' back and forth repeatin' over and over that she wasn't worth anything.

I reached for her, grabbin' her gently and pullin' her to me. "Bella, Angel, it's alright. I'm right here, and I'm not leavin' you. You are my mate, meanin' you are made for me in every way possible. I don't want you thinkin' that you are worthy or that you are broken or anything. You are perfect for me Darlin'. I love everything about you, you are strong, courageous, beautiful, and funny. You showed me how to live again, and that it was ok to be myself. I've been alone a long time, and the moment you came into my life, I could see things clearly again. You are everything I've ever wanted in a mate." I told her, pulling back slightly to look at her, hopin' to convey my sincerity through my eyes.

I saw her eyes well up with tears, and I thought I'd said something wrong and hung my head in shame. She wasn't havin' any of that though, because she placed her tiny, warm hand on my cheek and tilted my head up. "Do you mean it?" She asked softly, a few tears slidin' down her cheeks.

"Yes Angel, you are absolutely everything to me, I don't think I'd be able to live if I lost you." My voice was rough with all the emotions I was feelin'. I was tryin' so hard to let her see that I meant every single word I said to her.

She sniffled, wipin' her face of the tears and gave me a small, hesitant smile. "If I am your mate, you have to take it slow. You holding me, and being near me, I can stand, but I don't think I could deal with the other stuff right now." She whispered, her bottom lip quiverin'. She was so scared, and I vowed that I would make sure she was safe and happy.

"I promise you Angel, I'll never do anything you don't want me to. You are in the lead on this, if you want something, you let me know, and it doesn't matter what it is." I told her, elated that she was at least attemptin' to accept this and not runnin' away screamin' for the hills.

She only nodded as she snuggled into my embrace, restin' her head on my shoulder and wrappin' her arms around my chest. Her breathin' and heart slowed down, lettin' me know that she was nearly asleep. I didn't want to move, for fear of wakin' her up, so I just sat there, thinkin' about everything. The fact that she accepted me as her mate was something I would cherish for the rest of eternity, and I made a promise to myself that I would never let anything happen to her as long as I was still on this planet.


	11. Breakthrough

**AN: Thank you for all your wonderful reviews, as well as your story alerts. They mean the world to me, and make me want to write more for you guys. You are the greatest! **

**I figured it was time to do a little time skip to get more into the story, hopefully it turns out okay and everyone likes it.**

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><p><em><span>Bella POV:<span>_

I have been here a few months now, and things were going good. My foot had finally healed about 3-4 weeks after Peter confessed that I was his mate, which I'm still having trouble comprehending that. It's not that I don't adore Peter, because I do, he's done so many wonderful things for me, it's just the fact that I'm his mate. I'm the person he wants to spend his eternity with. I wish I could give myself fully to him, and be the mate that he deserves, but I still don't know if I'll ever be completely over what Edward did to me.

Jasper, on the other hand, has been the greatest big brother a girl could ask for. With him being an empath, he knows better than anyone when something is wrong with me, and tries to help me through whatever has made me feel like that. He doesn't push me or make me feel weak when he does it, he does it gently and reassures me over and over that I will be fine, and that he'll always be there for me no matter what happens. I love him so much, and I will never be able to repay him for all he's done.

Emmett and Rosalie are a different story. They haven't really been pushing me, but they have been acting like I'm doing something wrong. Emmett is the worst, he doesn't want me anywhere near Peter, saying that Peter could slip up and kill me and there wouldn't be anything they could do. I remember the last time I spoke to him about it, it wound up being a verbal fight between him and I.

_*flashback*_

_Peter and I were sitting on the back deck, watching the sun set when Emmett came outside. As soon as he saw Peter and I snuggling together, he started to growl. I turned slightly to look at him and glared._

"_Emmett, what the hell is your problem? You growl every single time I'm around Peter, and I'm getting sick and damn tired of it." I had finally had enough of his stupid drama bullshit._

"_You know you shouldn't be around him so much Bells, he could kill you and there wouldn't be a damn thing any one of us could do about it, do you even care or do you just have a death wish." He sneered, folding his arms over his chest._

_I heard and felt Peter growl lowly in his chest, and I turned back to him. "Peter, honey it's fine, I can take care of this, just calm down please." I asked him, placing a hand on his cheek softly. He only nodded while glaring at Emmett, so I stood up and faced my ex big brother._

_I crossed my arms over my chest, mirroring Emmett's stance and glared again. "Emmett McCarty Cullen, how dare you come into this house, after I so graciously let you back into my life, and expect to boss me around like a little fucking pet." I growled out the last word, stepping slightly closer to Emmett, uncrossing my arms and let them hang by my sides. "I've got news for you Emmett, you have absolutely no say so in my life. You think you can treat me like shit once again, and try to dictate my life? Well, you are sadly mistaken. If you can't control yourself, then you are more than welcome to leave, and I can honestly tell you now, if you left, I wouldn't shed a single tear." I could tell by the look on his face that he was shocked, but I frankly didn't care anymore. "Ever since you and your wife came here, it's been nothing but a damn argument with you two. It's like you think you are my parents or something. Sorry to inform you, Victoria killed my mother, and I'm betting that Alice has probably killed Charlie. You are not my parents, nor are you family to me any longer." I saw his face crumble in defeat, and I smiled internally. Serves him right if he thinks he can come in here and try and control my life. "You are only allowed to stay if Jasper says he wants you here, but from now on, I no longer want you around me. You were told to prove you wanted back in my life, and to be a family again, and yet you are doing nothing but showing me just how horrible the Cullen's truly are." I told him everything and I never raised my voice or threatened him. I didn't really care anymore if they stayed or left, I was done with them. I am so sick and tired of vampires thinking they can control me, and make me something I'm not._

_*end flashback*_

After I told Emmett off, him and Rosalie went out of their way to try and not be so controlling, but it wasn't working, and I wasn't going to fall for their miserable attempts to charm me.

I knew that Rosalie had been through a similar experience as I had, but she never once tried to talk to me about it. Maybe she was afraid of Jasper and Peter attacking her, or maybe she was just too cowardly to come to me herself, I didn't know, nor did I really care at this point. Every time I was in the same room with her, she would look at me like she was expecting me to go running to her and fess up to everything that had been done, and beg her to help me. She always had a look on her face that looked like pity. I knew something horrible had happened to me, and I knew it would take a long while before I was completely over it, but I didn't need anyone's pity. I was doing just fine I thought. I wasn't having flash backs, or flinching anytime Jasper or Peter came close to me, and if I started having a problem, I would talk to Peter and Jasper, and explain to them why I was feeling a certain way, and they would do their best to give me solid advice, and talk me through everything.

It had been a fairly quiet few months to say the least with everyone walking around on eggshells and trying not to piss someone off, when all of a sudden Rosalie's phone started ringing. I didn't think anything about it, just thought that maybe it was Carlisle or Esme checking in with her and Emmett, but I was sorely mistaken on that note.

When Rosalie looked at her phone, she looked up and Jasper fearfully before answering, although I didn't really understand why she would be fearful of a phone conversation. She put it on speaker phone so I would be able to hear it as well, and I could kind of understand why she was acting strangely..

"**Well, hello Rosalie. How are you dear sister?"** I heard Alice's horrible screech-like voice come through the phone. I saw Rosalie take a deep, silent breath before speaking.

"**I'm wonderful Alice, how are you?"** I could see that she was afraid, but I wasn't sure what would make her so scared, so I listened intently.

"**Oh, I'm doing great, although I could be doing better if my favorite shopping partner hadn't skipped town on me."** For some reason, I didn't like how Alice was speaking to Rosalie. Granted, I wasn't speaking to Rosalie at the moment, but she shouldn't be reduced to fearful glances, and trembling hands all because of hearing Alice's voice.

I grabbed a piece of paper and quickly wrote down a note to Jasper. _"Jazz, what's Rose feeling right now?"_ I wrote before sliding it quickly to him. He glanced down at it and frowned. _"She's feeling a lot of fear and guilt." _He wrote back, and it caused me to sit back and think. I still listened to the conversation though.

"**Sorry Alice, I felt like Emmett and I needed to get out of the house for a while. See some sights, and just try and rebuild our marriage to how it used to be."** Rosalie said, looking at me. I quirked an eyebrow at her, wondering just why she was looking at me, but she shook her head.

I heard Alice bark out a evil sounding laugh before speaking, and her voice sent chills down my spine. **"Oh Rose, I find that so damn funny, considering I haven't been able to see you or Emmett since you left the house. Wonder who you're with, could it possibly be that stupid skanky little human bitch Isabella?"** The hatred in her voice, and the pure malice she felt towards me when she talked about me had me reeling. I never knew just how psychotic she really was.

Rosalie looked at me again, and I had a brilliant idea. I wanted Rosalie to make Alice think I wasn't around anymore. So I scribbled on the paper, _"Make her think I'm not longer here, and that I left my stuff here and that's why she can't see you." _

Rosalie gave me a proud smile and nodded, **"No, Alice, apparently Bella isn't here anymore. When Emmett and I got here a couple weeks ago, Jasper and Peter said she'd been here, but ****had already left, that she took off one night while they were out hunting after they killed Victoria for her. No one's seen or heard from her since, but she left everything she owned here, even this ugly looking bracelet with a tiny wolf on it."** I grinned at Rosalie, nodding my head. Having her agree and play along like that just earned her some respect in my book. All three guys were giving me proud looks and smiling at me. They knew I was hoping to play Alice at one point but they didn't know when or how.

We all heard Alice give a little shout of victory, but she quickly covered it up by trying to get to Jasper. **"Well I guess since she's gone now, my Jazzy-poo can come home finally and stop all this nonsense. I miss him so much."** We heard her give a fake little whimper as she spoke. I felt Jasper tense up next to me, but I placed my hand on his arm and shook my head no when he looked at me.

I mouthed to him 'play along', and he scowled at me but nodded, taking a deep breath before speaking to Alice. **"Ali, I don't know if I'm coming home. I think I want to stay here with Peter for a while longer."** He looked at me, probably asking me silently if that was ok, and I nodded my head, grinning the whole time.

Alice started whining and trying to act pitiful, but I just rolled my eyes. **"But Jazzy, I miss you. I want you to come home please, baby?"** I watched at he paled even more, and looked seriously like he would be throwing up if it was possible. **"Maybe if you come home, we can go on a little vacation together, maybe get married again and live away from the family for a while."** She just kept on talking, trying to get back in his good graces, but I knew for a fact that it wasn't working. He was shaking with anger, and it was taking all he could to not growl at her.

"**No Alice, I want to stay here with Peter. No one wants me up there, all you want me for is for your own personal pleasure and gain. I was nothing more than a life size Ken doll for you."** When he said personal pleasure, I think everyone in the room got sick to their stomach, but we all remained quiet.

I wrote down another message, showing it to Emmett this time. _"Emmett, call for Rosalie and say something cruel and hateful about Alice, act like you just came in the door."_ He nodded, getting a huge grin on his face.

"Hey Rosie, who you talking to? Better not be that freak Alice." He said, and had to cover his mouth to stop from laughing. "You know I asked you not to talk to her, she's nothing but a psychotic whore who would sleep with anything dangling between his legs. Surprised she hasn't screwed Carlisle yet." He finished, and I was beaming at him.

Alice started screeching and yelling, saying how she would make Emmett pay for saying that about her, which caused Rosalie to growl and finally show her true bitchy side. **"Alice Cullen, you threaten my mate one more time, and I swear to everything that is holy in this world, you will be dead. You take your little boy body and go back to your fucked up family and leave mine alone. No one wants you, hell Edward killed himself to get away from you. Jasper left you, which I'm surprised he stayed with you as long as he did. Couldn't have been comfortable fucking a little boy all the time."** Rosalie was shaking with laughter by the end of her little speech.

"**Why you vain stupid bitch. I'll have you know that the reason Edward was killed was because he went to the Volturi trying to find out how to kill you, Emmett, Jasper, and Peter. He and I talked about it, and thought that in order to rule this coven, we had to get the three stupid ones out of the way or else you all would have stood against us, and if we kicked you all out, you would have went to the Volturi about us using all those human girls and boys. You think you are so smart Rosalie, but you are the dumbest blonde bitch I've ever met."** Alice scoffed, and I saw red. They used other girls, and even guys for their sick twisted shit. Well, it was time to finally make the plans known to the psychotic evil pixie.

I cleared my throat, catching everyone's attention, including Alice's, who stopped speaking and breathing. **"Well, well, well. Looks like we have a little psycho amongst us. You think you are so much better than anyone else just because of your visions, and because you have Carlisle and Esme right where you want them, huh Alice?" **I smirked. Everyone was watching me, trying to figure out where I was going with all this. **"Seems as if you forgot something my dear, the Volturi more than likely knows all about your little stunt you've been pulling, seeing as how when Edward told me about them, Aro can read every single thought you've had with just one touch. Who's to say that Aro didn't touch Edward, and find out everything you've been hiding? Who's to say that Aro didn't find out how manipulative you are. Maybe the Volturi has done some homework on you, just as I have, and found out how truly psychotic and stupid you really are. You think Rosalie is dumb, well maybe you should look in the mirror sprite, cause you are the dumb one for letting Edward go to the Volturi, and also for confessing your sins to us. I don't wish you luck Mary Alice."** I finished with a huge shit-eating grin on my face and everyone looking at me with weird expressions.

"**Oh my god..."** Was all we heard as Alice disconnected the phone. I was still smirking slightly with everyone watching me. They weren't speaking, so I got up and went to the kitchen to make me something to eat. I decided to just throw together a sandwich and eat it out on the back deck to watch the sun set like I do with Peter every day. It made my heart clench at the thought of Peter not sitting here with me, and I was thinking that maybe I'd crossed a line with saying all that to Alice.

I'd only eaten half my sandwich, and couldn't eat anymore because of all the thoughts running through my head. I faintly heard the back door open and shut, but I didn't look to see who it was. I was scared that I was going to be asked to leave and that they didn't want me anymore.

I didn't realize I was crying until I felt cold arms wrap around me, "Darlin', what's wrong?" Peter whispered in my ear.

I shook my head, putting my hands over my face. Peter turned me towards him, cradling me to his chest. He began running his hand through my hair, "Angel, you gotta tell me what's wrong, please?" He asked again, I could tell it was really bothering him. His voice was rough, and sounded like he was trying to be calm and patient, when he was anything but.

I hiccuped from all the crying and wrapped my arms around him, nuzzling my head into the crook of his neck. "You all were sitting there so still, I thought that maybe I'd done something wrong, and you were going to come out here and make me leave." I was holding him so tightly, that had he been human, I would have choked him to death.

He sighed, both his arms wrapped tightly around me. "Baby, we aren't gonna make you leave. We were all shocked that you happened to think of Aro doin' that, and none of us did. Bella, you are amazin', and I will never ask you to leave." I felt and heard him take a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "I love you Bella, I love you more than anything in this world. The only way I would ever think of bein' without you is if I was dead." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, both the three letter word that I partially dreaded to hear, and the fact that he would only leave me if he was dead, and I broke down sobbing.

I wasn't entirely sure why I was dreading him saying that three word phrase to me, but when he said it, it shattered the wall I had put up around me heart. Hearing someone else say they loved me, and knowing without a doubt that they meant it, it showed me that I wasn't completely broken, that I wasn't completely unlovable. I realized that even though I had a horrible past, with dirty, evil things done to me, I was still someone that was worthy of love and worthy of loving someone as wonderful as Peter. I vowed from that moment, that I would do whatever it took to prove to Peter that I did, in fact, love him and that I would spend eternity by his side.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope you like this chapter. Again I want to say thank you to all that have read this, reviewed, added it to their alerts, and even added the story to your favorites. You guy are awesome. <strong>


	12. Psychotic Pixies

**AN: I'm going to break this chapter up into at least 2 different POV's. Enjoy!**

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><p><em><span>Alice POV:<span>_

Why that stupid human bitch! She seriously needs to die, and if it wasn't for Peter and Jasper, she would have been dead by Victoria's hand. I can't believe they've sided with the pathetic human. I don't understand what the thrill about her is. She's weak, stupid, and thinks the world revolves around her. She's got another thing coming. They may have killed Victoria, but they haven't killed my other plans.

I had to run from the house to make a phone call. Victoria had other vampires waiting for her call, but I had to get this done quickly.

"**Hello?"** The male voice said through the phone.

"**This is Mary, Victoria is dead, so now you answer to me."** I snarled out, **"The human is still alive, but has vampires protecting her. I want her dead, and I want it done now, do what you have to do to get the job done."**

I didn't hear anything from the other side except the wind blowing through the phone, like he was running. When the wind stopped, I heard other voices in the background. **"Yes, Mistress. We will assemble and take out the human Mistress Victoria told us about. We will call you when the job is finished."** He hung up after that. I never understood why people will just hang up on you, but I let it go and went back to the house. Carlisle and Esme were beside themselves with worry of Emmett and Rosalie, so I had to find a way to placate them.

I walked in the door, listening for any sign of them being home and found that Esme was in one of the spare bedrooms that had all the others things in them. We had decided to put all Edward's, Jasper's, and now Rosalie and Emmett's things in here. Looked like Esme was holding something of Edward's, but I couldn't tell what. I quietly walked in the room, putting on my concerned face. "Esme, are you alright?" I asked softly.

She shook her head, clutching whatever it was to her chest. "No, I'm not okay Alice. I miss my children. Edward's gone, Jasper left, Bella is dead," I had to fight to suppress a growl at her name, "Emmett and Rosalie took off without telling us where they were or without calling us. I just want my children back Alice." She shook with sobs and walked out of the room, ignoring me completely after that. A very small apart of me was upset to see my mother figure like this, but the bigger part of me was elated. I was breaking them down and it felt good.

I couldn't get over the fact that Bella knew about my past though. I forgot to clean the records are the asylum after I was changed, so she obviously went there and got the records. Stupid bitch outsmarted me that time, but she would get what was coming to her eventually. I should have had the thought to go grab those records and delete them. I didn't want everyone to know that I had been declared legally psychotic. They had no business knowing how my past was. They shouldn't know that I've killed other people, before I was turned. I did it all out of fun and enjoyed every single minute of it. If it wasn't for our eyes changing colors, I'd be killing humans left and right, but I wouldn't be able to get close to them to play my games if my eyes were red. I just hope that the Volturi don't come after me now. I had totally forgot about Aro being able to read every thought someone's had, and knowing Edward, he let the bastard touch him, so now they know everything we've done. I'm amazed that we were able to keep it all from the family for so long though. I was sure they'd figure out what was going on a long time ago, but they are all too damn stupid to know what's going on around them.

The only reason Bella was allowed to meet the family is because I had it all set up to where James would kill her in Phoenix. Edward wasn't supposed to get there as quickly as he did, but when he did get there, he was supposed to help James kill her, but Jasper got there too quickly so Edward had to make is seem as if he and James were fighting. James had bitten Bella at the last minute and since Jasper was so close, I had told Edward to suck the venom out and not stop, but Carlisle stopped him before he killed Bella. Stupid assholes, all of them always ruining my damn plans.

After the Phoenix blunder, I had another vision of Bella's birthday party, and her getting a paper cut and Jasper lunging for her. I thought that it was finally going to end but again, my plan was thwarted. Emmett got to Jasper before he was able to get to Bella, even after Edward threw Bella into the plates. I was sure that all that blood, and everyone's bloodlust would surely send Jasper over the edge, but he just let Emmett take him out of the house.

When Edward got home that night, he and I went hunting together, and he told me that he was going to tell the family to leave, and was going to break up with her in the woods outside her house. He asked me if Victoria was in the area, but after the death of James, Victoria had stopped making decisions so I wasn't able to see her. Edward and I both hoped that Victoria would smell Bella in the woods and finally end her pathetic existence for us. But of course, nothing ever works out the way I envision. Bella was found about 12 hours after he left her by those stupid nasty mutts.

After a few months, she woke up from her catatonic state and started hanging out with the wolves. I was sure one of them would kill her for being involved with us, but I didn't think about one of them loving her. Apparently it wasn't enough though, since he imprinted and found his soul mate and Bella was left all alone again. I saw her go to college, and graduate, but after her graduation, I wasn't able to see her anymore. I told the family that I saw her jump off a cliff and kill herself to get them to stop thinking and talking about her. It of course didn't work with Jasper though. He was adamant about her not being dead, and we all finally got tired of it and kicked him out. We all blamed him for leaving Bella, of course it was a flat out lie. I just got tired of him being around, so I kicked him to the curb.

It was around that time that Edward was going to go to the Volturi to see what could be done about Rosalie and Emmett. We knew they were getting antsy, and asking a lot of questions. We couldn't kick them out because they'd go to the Volturi. They somehow found out about mine and Edward's games we would play with the humans, and we didn't want the Volturi to kill us, so we wanted to kill Emmett and Rosalie to get them out of the picture. Our biggest obstacle was Jasper. I knew that the Volturi wanted him as part of their guard, but he wouldn't join them. I didn't really want him dead, he was my companion for such a long time, and part of me did love him, but I knew that if he wasn't killed he would turn against us and try and kill us. His brother, Peter, I just wanted dead. I didn't want Jasper to go running to him if the Volturi couldn't kill him. Jasper was stronger with Peter by his side, and I couldn't let them get back together. That's part of the reason I had Charlotte killed.

Both Jasper and Peter thought that Charlotte had just run off with another man, but I lured her out away from Peter and killed her. I left a trail for him to follow and made him think she'd just run off. I knew it wouldn't hurt him too bad, they weren't real mates, just companions, but I knew that if someone came and attacked Peter, Charlotte would fight with Peter. She was a vicious little bitch too. Took 6 vampires to take her down, but she didn't go down without a fight. She took out 4 of them before the other 2 were able to subdue her and finally kill her.

I was jumping for joy that day when Peter called, all broken and despondent to say that Charlotte had 'left' him. Of course, I lied to Jasper, telling him it was about a new clothing line that was coming out, and the dumb country bumpkin believed me.

Now back to trying to get to Bella and kill her. She's apparently got Emmett and Rosalie there with her now, so that's 4 vampires that are protecting her. Seems like I'm going to have to up the ante now. Just hope my plans go through this time, and not fall through the cracks like they have been.

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><p><em><span>Peter POV:<span>_

When Bella told Alice off that last time, I was in shock. I never thought that Bella would see things differently than us. She was the one that told Alice that the Volturi possibly already know of their games they played over the years. I could tell all the others were shocked as well, since we all sat there without moving for the longest time. Long enough for Bella to go make herself something to eat and go outside.

When I heard the backdoor close, I snapped out of my thoughts, looking around at the others. When I saw them come to, I decided to voice my thoughts.

"Alice will be coming for Bella, and even us. She's not going to stop till either she's dead, or we all are. I can bet she's got an army that Victoria created just waiting for the word to come and kill us. Thank God she doesn't know where we are, but it would probably be best to move to a different house, just in case she knows of this one." I looked at Jasper and saw him nodding.

"Yea, she's out for blood, all of our blood, and she won't stop until it's spilled. We need to move, and honestly it would be better to change Bella sooner rather than later. She needs to be able to take care of herself." He looked at me, letting me know that it was mostly my choice, but I was the one that needed to talk to Bella about it.

I took a deep breath, ignoring Emmett and Rosalie and stood up and walked towards the back door. When I got there, I could smell Bella's tears, and I was wondering what the hell was wrong. When I walked outside, she was sitting in our usual chair curled up with her legs to her chest and her head on her knees.

I walked closer to her, leaning down and wrapped my arms around her, "Darlin' what's wrong?" I whispered, hoping not to scare her too much.

She shook her head, not even bothering to look at me. I'll admit that hurt some, but something was obviously bothering her, so I picked her up and sat down, sitting her in my lap. I was running my hand through her hair as she snuggled into me. "Angel, you gotta tell me what's wrong, please?" I asked, hoping beyond hope that she would talk to me.

She nuzzled into my neck, wrapping her arms around my chest and sighed softly, "You all were sitting there so still, I thought that maybe I'd done something wrong, and you were going to come out here and make me leave." She hiccuped and sniffled softly. Her tears were leaking down into my shirt, but I didn't care, I had to figure out a way to make her believe that I wasn't going to leave her, or send her away.

Finally I decided it was now or never, I had to tell her how I felt and hope it was proof enough that I wasn't going anywhere and neither was she. "Baby, we aren't gonna make you leave. We were all shocked that you happened to think of Aro doin' that, and none of us did. Bella, you are amazin', and I will never ask you to leave." She tightened her grip on me, and I smiled softly before I continued. "I love you Bella, I love you more than anything in this world. The only way I would ever think of bein' without you is if I was dead."

I felt her tense up slightly before she relaxed again, sighing softly. She was quiet for a few more minutes before I felt her tears more. She started sobbing and I was freaking out internally. Jasper whispered at vampire speed that she wasn't feeling anything but pure love, contentment, happiness, and trust. I let out a quiet sigh of relief and held her in my arms until she was able to calm down.

After she'd calmed down, I heard her heart beat and breathing slow down. She had cried herself to sleep in my arms again. I was happy about it, but I knew that if she didn't get in a bed to stretch out, she'd be sore. I had hoped to talk to her about changing her soon, but she was just dealing with so much at the moment, that I wanted her to sleep, so I got up as gently as I could with her wrapped around me, and walked inside. When Jasper saw her in my arms, he got a dark and determined look on his face, and I knew then and there that he would protect her at all costs, and I was so grateful to him at that moment.

He felt my gratitude and smiled, sending me his brotherly love and turned back towards Emmett and Rosalie, letting me walk upstairs with my Angel in my arms.

When I laid her down and started to pull away, she wouldn't let go and mumbled for me to stay with her again. I sighed happily and slid into the bed beside her, pulling her as close as I could to my body with the blanket in the way. I felt her sigh softly and fall back to sleep with her arm thrown over my chest and she kicked her leg over mine, like she was holding me in place and never letting me go.

As I was laying there with her, I heard Jasper downstairs talking to Emmett and Rosalie, telling them that it would probably be best if they learn how to truly fight. I scoffed as Emmett spoke, making me think that he truly was the dumbest vampire ever created.

"We already do know how to fight, what more could you teach us?" He asked. I could practically feel Jasper rolling his eyes and grit his teeth.

"Em, you only know of the Cullen's way of fighting, which is next to none. You need to learn how to truly fight a newborn and how to not only protect yourself, but the others on your side as well." I heard Jasper's voice get deeper when he mentioned protecting others on our side, and I smiled and looked down at the Angel in my arms, knowing that she was who he was talking about.

Rosalie was next to make me think she was stupid, "I know that newborns are stronger, but honestly Jasper, we know how to fight and take care of ourselves."

I heard him growl and stand up. He was pacing now, which made me tighten my grip on Bella. I knew that when he started pacing like that, that he was on the verge of letting the Major out, and I didn't want anything to happen to Bella. Part of me knew that he wouldn't hurt her, but it's the instinct to keep her protected at all times that kicked in.

"Fine, you think you know how to fight, and take down a newborn, then let's take this outside and see if you really know how." He marched towards the backdoor, opening it and stepping outside. When he didn't hear them following him, he growled. "Now!" As soon as the word was out of his mouth, they both shot out of there like their asses were on fire.

I smirked, and knew that they were in for a wide awakening when they find out that the Cullen's never taught them how to fight. The Cullen's only taught them how to defend themselves, not to truly fight to where you have to kill your opponent.

I heard Jasper tell Emmett to attack him and the next thing I know, I hear Rosalie screech and run towards where Emmett was just thrown into a tree. I smirked, and heard Jasper bark out a evil sounding laugh.

"You fight like a newborn Emmett, all brute strength and no direction. You would be easy pickin's for anyone that came along." I heard Rosalie growl at Jasper, and I just knew what was coming next, she was going to attempt to attack him, and was going to get thrown just like her idiot husband.

Next thing I know, I heard a tree fall in the woods, and I had to stifle a laugh, so as I didn't wake up Bella. As I predicted, Rosalie got thrown. Now it was both of them trying to attack Jazz and take him down, and they were losing epically.

When Bella heard the crashing of their bodies together, she jerked upright in bed, breathing fast. I sat up, wrapping my arms back around her, "Darlin', it's ok, it's just Jazz tryin' to teach the others how to properly fight a newborn, and they are losin' big time." I told her, smiling the whole time.

Her breathing went back to normal, and she smiled back at me. "Can we go watch?" She asked sheepishly.

I chuckled and picked her up, "Of course we can go watch. I'd love to see Jazz wipe the floor with both of them."

I began walking downstairs and out the back door. Since it was still daylight and she only napped, she would still be able to see everything, well at least as good as a human could see a vampire going full speed.

Jasper looked over and smiled at Bella, giving her a sly wink. She giggled at him and smiled back. She has been pretty much ignoring Em and Rose since she blew up at Em, and I could understand why she was, but she couldn't see the way it was hurting them, but I knew better than to open my mouth about it, or else she'd blow up at me and wouldn't speak to me.

After about an hour of watching them mock fight, I wanted to get out there and play to, but I didn't want to leave Bella. She must have seen the way I was looking because she giggled and tried to shove me away, "Go fight with your brother, I'll be fine here on the porch by myself."

I hung my head sheepishly and smiled, kissing her cheek softly and letting her sit in the chair and running out and tackled Jasper. We both busted out laughing before getting up and facing each other.

"Rose, Em, I want you to watch how Peter and I fight, it'll be the best way to show you how to fight a newborn." He told them without taking his eyes off me. They both nodded and walked towards the porch where Bella was. She didn't even pay them any attention, just watched Jasper and I.

After another 3 hours of all the mock fighting, the sun was going down, and I knew Bella would need to eat something, so I walked towards her and smiled. "You hungry Darlin'?" I sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. She snuggled into me, as always and smiled.

"Yea, I could eat. But I'd rather have pizza, I don't feel like cooking tonight." She told me, and when she mentioned pizza, her stomach gave a growl, which caused me, and the others to chuckle.

"Alright baby, I've got to feed real quick, so I'll run to town to feed and pick you up a pizza. Shouldn't be gone too long, so you could probably get a shower if you want, and I'll be back by the time you get out." I told her, kissing her head and standing up.

She nodded and began making her way inside as I made my way towards the woods to get to town. Emmett and Rosalie said they were going hunting as well, so Jasper was going to stay here with Bella. I gave him a nod, telling him thanks and to look after her, and he just smiled.

As I was running to town, I was thinking about how quickly things have changed in the last few months. Bella is opening up more, and not shying away from us like she used to, and she's finally accepted the mate, and is learning to believe that I do actually want her around. I can't wait to hear those 3 little words from her mouth, but I am patiently waiting. I will never push her for anything. She is my life, my everything, and I will make sure she is always safe and protected, no matter what.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope you enjoy this chapter, I know I've never split a chapter like this before, but I felt that Alice's POV needed to be done to give a little bit more background. Thanks for reading!<strong>


	13. Minor Setback

**AN: Sorry it's been so long since I updated, my muse decided to take a siesta for a while. My updates aren't going to be quite as frequent as earlier chapters. All my earlier chapters were already typed out, I just had to rework them a bit and post them, all the remaining chapters are coming straight from my brain to the computer. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

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><p><em><span>Bella POV:<span>_

After Peter left to go get me some food, I sat in the living room with Jasper, watching TV. Neither of us speaking, but it wasn't uncomfortable since we didn't need to fill the silence with conversation.

We had been sitting there for a while when Emmett and Rosalie came strolling through the back door, both with soft smiles seeing Jasper and I on the couch watching some mundane television show that I wasn't paying attention to. They sat down in the chair opposite us. I could tell they wanted to say something, but they seemed fearful of opening their mouths.

Finally I got fed up with it, and Jasper sensing my emotions looked at me with a raised eyebrow. With him and I, we were able to have silent conversations that irked the others. I raised an eyebrow back at him, flicking my eyes towards our company, sending him my annoyance. He smirked slightly sending me a dose of calm and his natural brotherly love and I sighed, knowing what he was implying.

"Fine, what are you two staring at us for? What do you want to say that you just couldn't come right out and say it?" I asked, huffing and crossing my arms over my chest like a child. I couldn't help it, I wasn't really in the mood to deal with them, but I figured it had to be done.

Emmett looked sheepish while Rosalie just looked miffed that I wasn't trying to be nice. "We want to know what you intend to do. I know you are going to be changed, but after that." She asked, and I sank down further into the couch and Jasper's side. I had already told them that I was going to get my vengeance on Alice for what she helped Edward do to me, and if Carlisle and Esme were a part of it, they would feel my wrath as well, but I guess I had to tell them once again.

"I've already stated that once I am changed, I'm going to get my vengeance on Alice for her helping Edward, and if Carlisle and Esme where at all involved in anything that's happened to me these last 5 years, they would pay as well. Then I am going to make sure that Alice's and Victoria's army has been dealt with properly." I told them, never taking my eyes off of them, so they would know that I was being completely serious, and hopefully it would finally sink into their stupid vampire brains.

"Why would you want to end Carlisle and Esme though?" Rosalie asked, making it sound like it was a blasphemous thing to do, let alone even think about. I could understand her thinking though, they had been her parents since she woke up as a vampire, but I could care less.

"As I stated, if they were involved in anything that happened to me in the last five years, and did nothing to stop it, they will die as well, doesn't matter if it was a minute thing or not." I could see Rosalie getting angry but I wasn't done yet. "And you can cut the pissy shit Rosalie, I can understand that they've been your parents for a while, but can you honestly sit there and tell me that you wouldn't want vengeance for what happened if our roles were reversed?" I asked her, cocking an eyebrow at her.

She huffed, relaxing her shoulders. "No, I can understand where you are coming from, but I honestly don't think they've known anything that's gone on. I just can't see sweet Esme letting that happen and doing nothing about it, nor can I see Carlisle with his unending compassion letting a man do that to a woman, or letting Alice do this."

I sat thinking for a moment before speaking. "Honestly, I can see why you would think that. You see your parents as people who could do no wrong, and who would right the wrongs of others in their family. But Rosalie, this has been going on for more than five years. Everyone assumed that I was dead all because Alice 'saw' my future disappear, but NO ONE thought to confirm it by seeing if I could be found. Maybe I stopped making decisions, or was gravely injured. Had just one of you thought to contact my father, you all would have found out quite quickly that I was in fact alive and kicking." I sat up straighter, still never taking my eyes off them. "You all believed that Alice was infallible, and would never lead you astray with her visions, which need I remind you, are subjective and are based solely on decisions? You believed that Edward was to be top priority since he could read minds, but what you also failed to realize, he couldn't read EVERYTHING someone thought, just what was at the forefront of the persons mind. Who's to say that Alice didn't manipulate him to do her bidding and make him thinking that what her visions said was law?" I stopped speaking, looking at the 3 vampires sitting there, still as statues. I knew I threw a lot their way, and for once I was happy that I was able to stun a vampire. I giggled softly to myself and went to the kitchen to get something to drink since Peter was supposed to be back soon with my food.

No sooner than I sat down at the table with my drink did Peter walk in. He smiled at me sweetly, his eyes shining a vibrant red. Normally I would probably cower in fear at a red-eyed vamp, but after being around him for so long, I had grown accustomed to seeing him with red eyes, and I don't think I could be able to see him with golden.

"Hey Darlin'." He walked over, kissing my cheek softly as he sat my food down in front of me. When I smelled the delicious scent of pizza, my mouth watered.

"Hey Peter. Good hunt?" I smirked at him as I opened my pizza box and grabbed a slice. As soon as the flavor hit my tongue, I moaned in appreciation. This had to be the best pizza that I've ever tasted.

I heard Peter chuckle and saw him shake his head slightly at me, "Yes, I had a good hunt. I would ask if it's good pizza, but I think I already have my answer to that." He said, staring intently at me with a smirk on his face.

I giggled softly, swallowing my bite before speaking. "Yes, it's so good, thank you."

He nodded and walked towards the living room, I assume to go upstairs to take a shower, but no sooner than he left, he walked back in with a bewildered look on his face.

"Uhm, Darlin', what happened while I was gone?" His confused and bewildered tone sent me into a fit of giggles while I tried not to spit my drink out through my nose.

It took me a minute or so to gather my composure, but when I did, I sobered up and looked at him. "I just told Rosalie what my plans were for after I am changed, and a few other things that I don't think they were aware of about Edward and Alice is all. They've been sitting like that since I finished and haven't moved or spoken since." I gave him a sweet, innocent look that caused him to chuckle again.

"And what is it they weren't away of about the mind-fuckers?" He asked with a smirk.

I shrugged, "Just that Alice's visions were subjective and based on decisions, which they should have known from the start, unless they didn't truly believe her, and that Edward couldn't read everyone's thoughts, just the ones that were at the forefront of their minds, and that possibly Alice was manipulating Edward into doing her bidding." I took another bite of my pizza, finishing off my second slice, and shrugging as if it wasn't really anything at all.

"Oh." Was all he said as he sat there, very nearly as still as the others, but he came back to reality a lot quicker. "You may be onto something there, but I don't think that Alice was manipulating Edward. He may not be able to read all your thoughts, but I do know that he wasn't the type to be manipulated like that. He would have figured something out and stopped her." He stated, still sitting fairly still. It was slightly unnerving, but I ignored it and finished eating.

When I was finished eating, I stood up and grabbed the pizza box, placing it into the fridge, turning around to see Jasper standing in the doorway of the kitchen. I wasn't sure what to say to him, so I kept my mouth shut and went towards the sink to wash the glass I had been using.

He didn't stay silent like I had thought, and when he spoke, he was standing right next to me. "How is it that you know so much about their gifts, and we didn't?" He asked, and it was a valid question.

I shrugged, turning to him. "In the beginning, I asked Alice about her visions. She told me that they were decision based and that nothing was ever set in stone. I just assumed that she had told you all. And with Edward, he would always tell me what someone was thinking at that precise moment, so I just gathered that he couldn't hear everything they were thinking, only the things they were thinking at that point in time."

I could tell that he was stunned still, and it was making me uncomfortable the way he was being so still and quiet, so I started to walk away with my head down. I had thought that they knew about Alice and Edward's gifts like I did, and while part of me was happy to impart new knowledge to them, I wasn't completely sure they would like the fact that I pointed all this out to them, seeing as how they were supposed to be superior to my human brain.

Before I got to the stairs, Jasper stopped me. "Bella, don't feel like that please? We're not mad at you, it's them we are pissed off at. We never knew any of that, and to find out after so long, it's shocking and makes us see how things were in a whole new light." Jasper had turned me gently towards him, but I couldn't bring myself to look at him. All my insecurities were coming back full-force, and all I wanted to do was run and hide in my bedroom.

I shook my head slightly and tried to turn back to the stairs, fully intending to run to the safety of my room but Jasper wasn't letting go. The feeling of being stopped and trapped sent me into a tailspin of flashbacks of that horrible day in the woods before darkness claimed me.

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><p><em>Rosalie POV:<strong><br>**_

After Bella told us all off, and gave us the new information about Edward and Alice, we all sat there like statues. It was odd hearing that, granted we should have realized it all beforehand, but we just let Alice lead us with what we thought were infallible visions. And we always looked to Edward to let us know if trouble was brewing with his mind-reading. We never imagined that they would lie to us about their gifts, or manipulate them to their liking.

When I finally 'came to', I saw that Bella was trying to get upstairs when Jasper grabbed her arm. I saw Bella tense up and her eyes get a faraway look as she started to tremble. I knew what was happening, but no one else did. I jumped up as soon as I saw this, and got to her in time for her to start to fall. She had fainted. I grabbed her gently, scooping her up into my arms.

"What the hell happened to her?" I heard Peter growl out as he stalked into the living room where we were at.

I saw Jasper blanch and start to back up with his hands raised. "I was trying to talk to her, and she was trying to walk away from me so I grabbed her arm. Then she fainted."

I sighed softly, looking down at the broken girl in my arms and sat down on the couch. "Jasper, you can't just grab her like that. I know you didn't mean to, but when you grabbed her, you inadvertently made her flash back to what happened to her."

As soon as the words were out of my mouth, Jasper dropped to his knees. He was projecting his emotions; despair, self-loathing, fear, anger, and loss. He truly thought that Bella wouldn't be his sister anymore after this and he hated himself for making her flash back to that horrible day.

Peter was seething, and breathing heavily. He stalked up to Jasper and kicked him to the ground, "If you EVER touch my mate like that again, I will end you." He hissed out, causing Jasper to flinch.

"Peter, I'm sorry. I didn't know it would cause her to do this, I'm so sorry." Jasper started dry sobbing as he crawled towards me. I instinctively pulled Bella closer to me to try and shield her, even though I knew that he wouldn't hurt her, it was just I suddenly felt fiercely protective of her.

He just grabbed her hand, still sobbing. "Oh god Bella, I'm so sorry. I never meant for this to happen." None of us excepted what happened next.

"Jasper, it's alright, you didn't know." Bella whispered, squeezing his hand gently.

"No I didn't know, but I shouldn't have grabbed you like that." He was still sobbing softly, and looked so heartbroken, and I wanted to make him feel better, but honestly, he should know better than to grab a woman who's been violated like she was, especially when it was one of our own kind that violated her in the first place. "Please, I'm sorry. Can you ever forgive me?" He whispered, still clinging to her hand like it was a lifeline.

She glanced up at me and nodded softly for me to let her up. I let go reluctantly, and she sat up, placing Jasper's head in her lap. She began running her fingers through his hair and shushing him softly. "Yes, Jasper, I forgive you. You didn't mean to, and it wasn't your fault. Please calm down, I don't like seeing my big, strong brother looking so broken. I'm fine Jazz, and I'm right here." She cooed at him, and I could tell it was working. He was finally starting to calm down. I was grateful for Bella's presence then, because I don't think anyone would have been able to calm him down.

After he had finally calmed down, it was time for Bella to go try and calm Peter down. I knew it would be more difficult seeing as how they were mates, and he was absolutely furious about anything happening to Bella.

Bella walked in, and went straight to Peter, "Peter, are you ok?" She asked softly.

"No, not really Darlin'. I don't like seeing you like that, knowing I can't do anything to help you." He must have grabbed her and nuzzled his head into her neck because his voice was slightly muffled.

"Peter, it's fine. He didn't realize that would happen, and frankly neither did I. You have to calm down honey. Please." She asked, and I could tell it was working. Jasper had been accidentally projecting the emotions that he was feeling.

I think we all sighed in relief when things calmed down, and everything was back to relative normalcy around here. I was hoping that after this little mishap that Bella would allow Emmett and I to get closer to her. I knew she was angry with the remaining Cullen's, and if she was telling the truth about Carlisle and Esme having anything to do or say about what happened to her, they will no longer be my family, and I will help Bella get her vengeance against them, whether she likes it or not.

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><p><strong>AN: Again, I want to apologize for the long wait, this chapter was kinda hard to get out, and I could figure out how I wanted it to go. As I stated previously, the following chapters are going to take longer for me to get out, since I haven't had them wrote beforehand like I did the other chapters. I hope you all enjoy it, and continue to review.<strong>


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: I am so sorry about the long wait. I know it's been nearly a year, and while I could say it's because RL got in the way, I just have to say, I got bored with this story. I knew I was going to finish it eventually, I just didn't know when. My sister, Lissanrose, is the one you have to think for getting my ass in gear to get this chapter out. I can't promise chapter 15 will be out in a few days, or a few months, all I can promise is, I WILL finish this story at some point. I appreciate all those that have stuck with this story, and stuck with me, you all are great. If you have any ideas about where to go from here, let me know. Thanks.**

**I own nothing!**

**Chapter 14: Emotions Run Rampant**

_Jasper POV:_

Once things finally settled down, I was able to feel everyone's emotions. Rose was feeling pity and guilt. I'm guessing the pity is because of what Bella has had to go through, and the guilt was because she didn't completely believe her. Emmett is feeling a plethora of emotions that are hard to lock on, but that's just Emmett.

It's Bella and Peter that are the ones I feel the most. Peter is feeling slight rage, because I caused Bella to flashback, but he's also feeling love, and concern. Bella is mostly feeling love; love for my as her big brother, and love for Peter. What's surprising is, she's feeling love for Rosalie. I'm not sure if it's because Rose kind of protected her, or if it's because Rose stood up for her. Either way, she's feeling love. Bella's also feeling like her family has finally come together.

With Rose protecting her, Peter nearly kicking my ass, Emmett not jumping to her aide it's brought the three of them together in Bella's heart and eyes. I knew she already loved me like a brother, so I'm automatically lumped in there with them, but to Bella, it's like things are finally falling into place.

She looks at me, raising an eyebrow, and I know that's her way of asking if I'm alright. I smile at her, and send her a dose of love and affection. She smiles at me and nods, knowing that she and I are alright.

Peter comes in with her food and sits down beside her. We're all quiet to start off with, and apparently that's not what Bella wants. I feel her irritation stir, and I have to stifle a chuckle.

"Is someone going to talk, or are we just going to sit around and watch me eat?" She raises an eyebrow at us, and I couldn't help it, I started laughing, no idea why it's really funny, but I just couldn't help it. She tried to glare at me, but couldn't hold it as she started giggling herself. Rose, Em, and Peter are all looking at us like we've grown another head, which sends us off laughing even more.

Once we got calmed down, she began eating again, ignoring everyone, but every once in a while I'd feel her irritation stirring even more. I wasn't sure what to talk about so I kept quiet. Rose finally got fed up with it.

"We need to talk about where to go from here. We already discussed that Alice is going to be coming for us with an army. Does anyone have any other property that's out of the way of everything, and that no one else knows about?" Rose asked, finally bringing us back to the problem at had. Alice and her army.

Emmett sighed, "I don't have anything that Alice doesn't know about. She knows about my family property, and all the other places I own." He was feeling dejected, and while part of me understood, the other part was angry. He should have kept something all to himself, but he's never been able to do that.

"I have nothing as well. I never kept up with my family's happenings, and all the other things I have are all in mine and Emmett's names." Rose stated, not looking at anyone. It was amazing to me that this independent woman kept all their stuff together and never had anything just for herself.

"Well, I've got a couple places located in different places. Not entirely sure how they look anymore. I know of one that could possibly work; it's extremely remote, and can only be accessed by one side." I said, thinking about the place I've got in Montana, but not sure how everyone else would like it. "It's fairly large, lots of forest around it, away from civilization."

Bella was watching me, it was like she could understand everything I was feeling and thinking, which was a little unnerving. No one has ever understood me the way Bella does.

She looked at Peter, and they had one of their silent conversations. They both nodded and smiled at each other. "I think we should go there. We'll pack this house up of just the things we need and the few things we want and head up there. Need to leave as soon as possible though so we don't get ambushed or run into trouble." Bella said, taking charge of things again. I doubt she realizes she's doing it.

Rose and Emmett are both shocked at Bella. They're just now seeing how truly strong Bella is. She may have stood up to Rose in the beginning, but they both thought that Bella was still weak just because she was human. I really had hope that they would stop thinking like that, but I seriously doubt they would. They lived with the Cullen's for entirely too long, and they've got the 'Cullen' mindset about everything.

"Great idea Angel. We'll get to packing now and leave tomorrow. If we stick to the back roads, and make few stops, we should be able to drive straight through, so everyone should feed tonight after we're finished packing." Peter smiled at Bella, and I could feel the love pouring off him in waves. It was a heady feeling. I never knew that Peter could love this much. Hell I wasn't sure it was possible for anyone to love as much as Peter does, but Peter has always been different and better than most.

We all agreed and got up to start packing, leaving Bella to finish her leftover pizza. As I walked past Bella, I dropped a kiss to her head and she sent me a burst of love. It was great to finally find someone who loved me for who I was, even if it was just my sister. No one had ever truly loved me for me except Peter. I was glad that Peter had found Bella. They were perfect for each other.

_Bella POV:_

After everyone left to go pack, I snuggled into Peter. I knew I needed to let him pack our things, but I just needed to sit with him and feel safe and loved for a while. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his lap. I buried my head in his neck and sighed softly. As much as I was terrified of what was going on between us, I was equally excited about the prospect of finally having someone in my life who would be perfect for me. He never tried to stamp down my independence, or make me feel like I was less of a person because I was human in a supernatural world. He was everything I ever dreamed of having in my life but was too scared to go for after what Edward and Alice did to me.

His arms tightened around me slightly, and he tucked his head into my shoulder. We just sat there in silence, listening to the others packing and going back and forth upstairs while we sat there in our own content little bubble trying to block out the rest of the world for a while. Too bad my life couldn't stay content for long.

My phone started ringing suddenly. It was the ringtone from Jake when he used Sam's phone to call me. I was afraid of answering, but I knew I needed to. I gulped and reached for the phone as Jasper and the others came downstairs.

I picked up, feeling like my throat was going to close up on me. _**"Hello?"**_

I heard a soft sigh on the other side and closed my eyes. I knew what happened before they even said anything. _**"Bells." **_His voice broke and tears started streaming down my face. I could feel everyone looking at me, and afraid of why I was suddenly crying.

"_**When, how, and who?"**_ I asked, confusing everyone even more. I looked up at Jasper and sent him my despair, grief, and guilt. He hit his knees with a wide-eyed look, knowing what was going on without my saying anything. Peter looked at Jasper than at me, and it was like a light bulb went off in his head and he sighed softly, tightening his arms around me, pulling me closer.

"_**This morning, about 5, and Cullen's. I'm sorry Bells, we tried…" **_His voice broke, _**"We were patrolling around Charlie's house when the call was sounded near the treaty line. When we got there, the pixie looking Cullen was there with this crazy gleam in her eyes and said we fell right into her trap. We didn't see the other Cullen's there, but when we got back to Charlie's he was already dead and the house was in shambles. It looked like they were looking for something. We had to set the house on fire, but we made sure to grab everything of yours and his that we thought you'd want. Again I say I'm sorry Bells."**_ By the end of it all, I was sobbing into Peter's chest. My father paid for my mistakes.

Peter grabbed the phone from me since I could no longer talk. _**"Jake, this is Peter. Thank you for trying to protect her father."**_

"_**Don't mention it Peter. Charlie Swan was like a father to a lot of us, he was a great man and didn't deserve to have this done to him. None of us here blame Bella for what's happened, we just want her protected from the crazy people who keep doing this to her."**_

"_**She'll always be protected with me around. You don't have to worry about her. We know that Alice is crazy, and that she's the one that's been gunning for Bella to be killed. She's got an army now and it's extremely possible that she's going to send the army after us and Bella so we're going to be moving."**_ Peter sighed softly, _**"Just to be on the safe side, we're not going to tell you, but we'll let you know when we get moved and you can always call whenever you want to. We're not going to keep Bella from any of you guys."**_ I smiled softly and snuggled further into Peter.

"_**Thank you Peter, that means the world to all of us. Bella is family to us. She's part of the pack, no matter what."**_ Jake said seriously, causing my head to snap up.

"_**Jake? Are you saying what I think you are?"**_

"_**Yes Bella. I came to terms a long time ago that you were always going to be part of the supernatural world, and to do that, you can't be a human. Obviously you can't be a shifter, so what else is there?"**_ I could tell he had a smile on his face towards the end, which caused me to smile wider.

"_**Thank you Jake. I'll talk to you soon. I love you, and everyone there."**_

"_**Your welcome Bells. We all love you too. Stay safe."**_ He hung up the phone, leaving the room in silence. Each of us thinking our own thoughts.

I took a deep breath and looked towards my vampire family. "What say we get the rest of the stuff packed and hurry and get out of here, I'd rather not stay any longer than we absolutely have to."

They all laughed softly at me, each of them looking at me in some form of sympathy because of what happened, but I was intent to ignore it until I was able to be alone and have the proper breakdown that my Dad deserved. I got up from Peter's lap and went up the stairs to start gathering all my stuff. I didn't have much, just my two bags and my truck, but I wasn't even sure if we were going to be taking my truck or if Peter had a bigger vehicle. I sat down on the bed and sighed softly, putting my head in my hands. I couldn't believe that Alice was doing this, part of my could though. I had known when they were in Forks that she was a little deranged, but I didn't think anything about it, I thought she was my best friend. Guess I was seriously wrong about that.

_Emmett POV:_

Even though she told me that she was no longer my sister, I'll always consider her my sister. She's been through so much. Bring brought into the supernatural world by someone she thought loved her. Her vampire family up and leaves her without a backwards glance all because of Edward. We never should have listened to him. I am ashamed to even say the Cullen's were ever my family after what they put Bella through.

When she got that phone call, all I wanted to do was pull her into my arms and hold her and take all the pain and hurt away from her, but I couldn't get near her. I understand why she's angry at me and Rose. We technically sided with the family and hurt her, and when we were trying to make amends, we hurt her even worse by trying to keep her away from the only source of comfort and protection she had. I never thought that I would look at myself in the mirror and hate myself for what I've done to her.

Rose came into the room with a pensive look on her face. She started packing her things again without saying anything, which kind of worried me. I've never known my Rosie to be this quiet. "Babe, is everything ok?" I asked as I came up behind her, wrapping her in my arms. She sank into them gratefully and shook her head.

"Not really Em. We destroyed her when we left. We let Alice and Edward dictate our lives and take away our free will. We essentially did that to Bella when we got here and tried to keep her away from Peter." She sighed, turning in my arms and buried her head in my chest. "I don't know how to help her Em. She never deserved any of this, and yet it's been piled onto her, and she's still standing. I admire her, and wish there was more that we could do for her."

"Babe, we're here now. Yes, we let them tell us what to do, where to go, what to wear, and all that shit, but you have to remember, when we all left Bella, we all changed. We stopped letting them tell us what to do all the time, we started taking control of our lives. No, it wasn't soon enough, but it matters now that we know what has been going on. We just have to keep trying, and stop thinking and acting like Cullen's." I tightened my hold on her, running my hands up and down her back hoping to help her calm down. Everyone always thought I was just this big joker who was never serious, but that's just how I was with Alice and Edward. They were the 'smart and good-looking' ones. They let Rose share in the spotlight some, but Jasper and I were always in the background.

"You're right, and I know you are, but I just never thought it would be this hard. Of course I never expected to find my baby sister alive and going through everything she's going through. Guess we have to stop looking at her like a 17 year old and start looking at her like the 23 year old survivor that she really is." She sighed, pulling out of my arms and going back to packing. We didn't have a lot of stuff, but we both liked our things packed a certain way, and that's why it always took us longer to pack up than it did everyone else.

After I finished packing my stuff, I took my bag downstairs where Peter and Jasper were sitting. "Are we taking one vehicle, or two? And do we need to pack anything else up?" I asked as I placed my bag close to the door.

Peter looked at me and nodded, "Guess it would be best to take two. One to carry most of the stuff we're taking with us except our personal bag. Need to have one for Bella to lay down in so she can sleep." He stood and walked into the kitchen, "Probably be better also to take along all the food that won't spoil on the trip so she can snack on them or whatever. I've got a cooler in the garage so we can pack the sandwich stuff for her too. That way we have to make less stops except for her to have her human moments and us to feed sometimes." As he finished, Jasper stood up and walked through the kitchen door to the garage and got the cooler for Bella's food stuffs. The three of us began packing what was needed or wanted from downstairs, hoping to get it all done faster so we could leave quicker. We were all worried about what Alice was going to do if she ever found us, and we all wanted to protect Bella.

By about midnight, all the personal bags were packed, and Bella was napping upstairs. We began packing the bags into the two vehicles. With Jasper and Peter taking the Ford Expedition for Bella to sleep in, and Rose and I driving my Jeep. It was decided that Bella's truck was going to be parked in the garage. We were afraid that with Charlie being killed, Alice would have the information about Bella's truck and be able to track us with it, so we wanted to take out that equation.

Out of no where, my phone rings, and I sigh. Looking at the caller ID, I see that it's Carlisle, so I breathe a little easier. _**"Hey Carlisle, what's up?"**_

I hear him take a deep breathe and let it out slowly, _**"Emmett, would you happen to know what's going on lately?"**_ I turn and see the rest of them standing behind me and shake my head.

"_**What do you mean, what's going on lately?"**_

"_**I'm talking about Alice. She's acting like something's going on. She's being extra secretive."**_ I knew it was hard for him, with him working all the time, he's never really been around to understand what's been going on. A very small part of me felt sorry for him, but the bigger part was angry at him.

"_**The only thing I can tell you is that she's losing her mind. Rosie and I decided to take a little vacation and ran into Jasper and Peter, then we have Alice calling and sounding like a crazy person, claiming that Bella is around, when she's the one that told us Bella was dead. Alice started throwing around threats and make it seem like we were hiding something from her. It's not our fault that she can't see us when we're with Peter."**_ I told him in my most serious voice. It wasn't all lies, but he didn't have to know that.

He sighed again, and I could just picture him pinching the bridge of his nose, _**"I was afraid of this. I'm not sure how or where it came from, but a package came to me at the hospital today. It was the records of Alice's stint in that institution before she was turned. Emmett, did you know that she was admitted at 10, but before that, she was killing people and claiming it was visions telling her to do it?"**_

I was standing there with my mouth hanging open, _**"You're serious? She started at 10? God, no I didn't know that, or else I would have left a long ass time ago."**_

"_**I don't blame you Emmett. I'm beginning to think that everything she's told us has all been lies."**_ I heard what sounded like a sob coming from him, but I didn't think anything about it. _**"I can't believe I never checked out her story. I don't know what's going on lately Em, but for the first time in a long time, it's like I can see things clearly now. I'm afraid of what I've said and done to you and the other members of this family."**_

"_**Carlisle, what are you saying? Do you think that Alice had something to do with it?"**_ I asked, looking wide-eyed at the rest of my family standing in front of me. Rosie was clinging to Jasper, a completely heartbroken look on her face.

"_**I don't know what to think anymore Emmett. Since you and Rose left, and Alice started acting stranger than normal, it's like my mind isn't a cloudy. I started thinking back to what's been going on, and there is no way in the world I would have let Edward and Alice talk us into leaving Bella like we did. There is no way in the world I would have let Edward and Alice think they could run this family. There are so many regrets I have that I wish I could take back, but the biggest are you, Rose, Jasper, and Bella."**_ I heard him stifle a sob again, and I closed my eyes. _**"I left my daughter alone in the world, when I should have protected her. I should have done more for her, and now I'll never get the chance to try to make it up to her."**_

Everyone was staring at the phone in my hand, speechless. We weren't sure what to believe, but there was no way Carlisle was faking it. You can't fake emotions like that. _**"Carlisle, what are you going to do now?"**_ I felt I should ask, it would be better to judge him now, than to have it blow up in our face later.

"_**I want to leave here, but I know that as soon as I do, Alice will find me and drag me back. I can't keep doing this. I am over 300 years old, and I'm tired. Tired of trying to be a leader, tired of working in hospital after hospital all the time. I'm just tired Emmett."**_ He sighed, sounding thoroughly defeated.

I looked at Jasper and Peter, since they shared leadership of the Whitlock Coven. I was unsure what to do. I've never heard Carlisle sound like this, and it was scaring me some. I knew, deep down, that he was telling the truth, but didn't know what everyone else thought.

We were so engrossed in our own thoughts that we didn't hear Bella coming towards us with a piece of paper. _'I believe him. Let him come to us in Montana, but don't tell him where over the phone. Tell him to think about coming to you guys, so he won't be visible in Alice's visions, and when he gets far enough away from them, text the address to his phone, but do it in code in case Alice somehow sees.'_

We all blinked at the genius idea and smiled at her, nodding. _**"Carlisle, if you are absolutely sure. Pack just your stuff and think about coming to see Jazz, Rosie, and me with Peter. It should block you from Alice. Once you are far enough away from her, you'll have to text us and let us know, then we'll let you know where to go from there."**_

We all heard a breathe of relief from the other side of the phone and we all smiled at each other. _**"Thank you Emmett. Tell the others I said thank you as well. This is more than I could ever ask from any of you."**_

"_**Think nothing of it Carlisle, just keep thinking about us and Peter, and it should protect you. We'll see you soon."**_ I told him, hanging up the phone.

We all turned towards Bella, "How did you know he was telling the truth?" Jasper asked, confusion etched into his face.

"When have you ever heard Carlisle Cullen ever sound so down and defeated? When have you ever heard Carlisle Cullen ask for help from anyone? In all the stories I heard about him, he was always the strong one who would take on the world to protect his family. His family has basically fallen apart. His oldest 'son' is dead, his other two 'sons' and one of his 'daughters' have all left the family. He's only got one daughter left, and a wife who seemed to be using him but no one could see it. Alice, as we all know, is psychotic, and something deep down makes me think that Esme has been in on Alice's schemes from the start. He said his mind was cloudy and he's finally been able to think clearly. Think about it guys, Alice has the visions, Edward had the mind-reading, throw those in with a type of mind-control, or mind-fogger type thing, and you've got Esme." She said, looking at each of us, before sighing at the confused looks we were all sporting. "Think about it guys. Every time Esme got on to you for something, how did you feel?"

I stood there in stunned silence. Bella was right. Every time Esme got on to me for my language, or my video games, my mind felt fuzzy for a while, but I thought nothing of it. I dropped to my knees, my head going into my hands. "Oh god… You're right… It all fits…"

Jasper and Rose weren't far behind me, but they didn't hit the ground like I did. No sooner than her saying all that, Peter got his 'a-ha' face. "Bella's right, but it was a reverse form of telepathy. She could implant thoughts into your subconscious, which would fog your mind for a while afterwards. It wasn't really mind-controlling, but damn near enough." He turned to Bella, with a thoughtful look on his face. "How come you knew that?" He asked softly.

"Well, think about me now, Edward couldn't read my thoughts. Alice's visions never fully worked on me, and Jasper's gift never really works on me all the time. I'm pretty sure Rose's 'lie-detector' is faulty when it comes to me as well. When Esme would try to get on to me, I would feel a slight pressure in my mind, but it wasn't enough to worry about or even think about. After she would do that, she would get this gleam in her eyes but it was gone before anything could be said or done about it. So I just put two and two together and came up with a type of mind-control or fog." She shrugged like it was no big deal, but it was a huge deal. This tiny little human knows more about our world than even we do, and we've lived it longer!

"Way to go Angel. That's good news for us. The more we know about them, the better chance we have." Peter smiled at her, pulling her to him and hugging her. She wrapped her arms around him and I heard her sigh softly, like she was finally safe. It clicked then, why they were together so much, and with all the touching. She was his mate, and he would always protect her. No wonder she chewed my ass out about trying to dictate her life. I vowed then and there to never do that to her again, no matter what.

_Peter POV:_

My girl the genius! She figured out a way to get Carlisle away from Alice and Esme that none of the rest of could figure out. She also figured out that Esme was also working with Alice and controlling people. It's amazing what you can figure out when you take a step back and start thinking about everything that's gone on.

"Let's get the rest of the stuff packed and go ahead and hit the road. The sooner we're on the road, the sooner we can arrive in Montana." Jasper said, coming out of his own stupor. I know it's got to be hurting him to know that Esme was doing all that along with Alice and Edward. It may hurt Rose and Em as well, but it would hurt Jasper the most because of his empathy. He should have been able to tell something was going on, but he never had any idea things weren't what they seemed in that family. I'm glad that Carlisle is coming back to himself though. Jazz, Em, and Rose can all have their father-figure back, and maybe Carlisle will be able to help Bella heal more than any of us can do.

"Alright, let's load everything not essential to Jasper, myself, or Bella into the Expedition, then you guys can take the Jeep with everything else." I told them, leading Bella towards our ride. She hopped in the back, smiling at the blanket and pillow that was there. I kissed her cheek and told her if she wanted to lay down, she could.

Once everything was packed up, I tossed the keys to Jazz and let him drive us. He grinned at me before getting in and starting the truck.

The radio was turned on, but down low for just a little background noise for Bella to relax to. I was hoping that she'd be able to sleep most of the drive. I knew that she hadn't been sleeping well lately, and the two phone calls we got today were just icing on the cake for her emotional state. Between finding out that her father was murdered, and the other man she used to considered a father was coming back to the family must be playing havoc with her mind.

When I knew she was asleep, I turned to Jasper. "What's she feeling Jazz?" I asked softly, keeping an eye and hear on Bella while the other was on him.

"She's feeling a fuckton of shit man. When she found out about Charlie, I thought it was going to knock me out with what she was feeling. It literally felt like a hole was ripped into her gut, but she fought through it because of you. She pulled strength from you, and some from me. I think she knew I could handle it better than her, so she sent me her despair, grief, and guilt." He sighed, scrubbing a hand down his face. "When she came out and wrote that for Em to tell Carlisle, her emotions were on a rollercoaster. She wasn't sure whether to feel happiness, love, hatred, guilt, or rage. She kept flipping through them. But I can understand all of them from her. When we were in Forks, she loved Carlisle like a second father, and I can only imagine how she felt with him leaving like that without saying anything. She's happy that he'll be back, but she's also not going to let him off the hook, I can tell you that much."

I smirked slightly at that. My girl would never let anyone walk all over her again. After all that's been thrown at her, she's one of the strongest women I've ever known, and I'm glad that she's mine. Since I met her, I can feel myself living again, I feel like I can be a better man because of the woman laying in the back seat of the SUV.

Hell, since Jazz, Em, and Rose came around, I can see a difference in all three since being around Bella again. Jazz is the brother I always wished for. He's both the Major and Jasper. He isn't afraid of slipping up or hurting her. He loves her, and she loves him for exactly who he is. Em is still a teddy bear, but he's now showing more of his serious side that he was always afraid to show to people. And Rose, god she's made a complete one-eighty. While she's still bitchy, she's showing more of her vulnerable side. It was a great thing to witness all the changes the three of them are making.

I knew that from here on out. Nothing would ever be the same again, and I wasn't going to complain about it. I was just going to live with my mate and my family and let life take us where it wants us. I knew we'd have some problems along the way, but as long as we stuck together, we'd come through it relatively unscathed, we just have to get over this hurdle before we can truly begin to live.


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Thank you for all the reviews. I'm so glad that so many of you have and are enjoying my story. I'm sorry for not updating often, and I won't give you excuses, I'll just say that I get bored with writing. I hope you all stick with me, because this story WILL be completed, it'll just take me a while.

This chapter is mostly only filler. Sorry for the long wait, but my brain just doesn't want to cooperate with me in finishing this story right now.

I own nothing!

**Chapter 15: **

_Bella POV:_

We were about half-way through our drive when we stopped at this out of the way diner. I wasn't sure why we stopped here, of all places, but I wasn't going to complain. I needed something in my stomach, and needed to find relief for my bladder. I hated that everyone was in this mess because of me, but on the other hand, I didn't want to die because of some psychotic, deranged vampire out for my blood for something she perceived that I did. I'm not the one that made the Volturi kill Edward. I'm not the one that took Jasper away from her, nor am I the one that made Emmett and Rosalie leave the family. I had no way of knowing what was going on, and for me to take the blame would be a pointless and idiotic thing to do. She was the one that got together with Edward and Esme and caused all the family issues and drama.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. There were more important things to think about, and I wasn't going to let some little boy looking pixie vampire stop me from living my life. I am going to Montana with my new family, and I am going to live, for the first time in five years, because it would be something my Dad would have wanted me to do. He was so worried about me the last five years; worried that I was going to do something to hurt myself. Now he'll never know that I was doing something about my life now.

Walking inside the diner, I told Jasper what to order me while I went to the bathroom. He agreed and I headed towards the back. When I walked into the bathroom, I locked the door and sighed softly, leaning my back against the door. Even though we were going to Montana, I had a strange feeling about things that I couldn't pinpoint. Between Alice the psycho, the army that's possibly going to be gunning for us, Carlisle's sudden flip in sides, Charlie being killed, and Rose and Em being around, I felt like my world was crashing down around me, and I couldn't do anything to stop it.

Sighing, I walked over towards the sink and looked into the mirror. I'd avoided mirrors for a while because I didn't want to see the pathetic excuse I had become. Looking into the mirror now, I realized what a joke I became after meeting the Cullen's. Before I met Edward, I wasn't some pushover who let people walk all over me and didn't have a backbone. I was the one that took care of my mother because she was always off having her own fun, and made sure that things were taken care of. I was the adult, and yet when I started dating Edward, I reverted back into a child. I was the one who worked and kept the bills paid and food in the house.

I glared at my reflection and shook my head. How could I have been so stupid? That was why Charlie kept looking at my funny; he knew I was a strong, independent person, and when I started letting Edward and his family walk all over me, he knew that something was wrong. He was worried that they were doing something, and he was right. Edward was 'dazzling' me with his vampire charms which caused me to repress my own personality and he stuck his own in there, making me into what he wanted me to be.

I thought back to how he was when we first got together, and to how he was just before he left me. When we first got together, he was the perfect gentlemen that doted on me left and right, but as the relationship progressed, he became a possessive, overbearing asshole who wouldn't let me do anything on my own. He told me what to wear, what to eat, when to sleep, who I could be friends with. He was even trying to stop me from seeing my own father, and yet I never noticed a damn thing. Even now, five years later and him being dead, I am still the weak-minded bitch he wanted me to be.

I squared my shoulders and decided then and there that I was going back to being who I always should have been. Yes, I was raped, but I wasn't going to let it lead me any longer, I was going to take my life back.

_Jasper POV:_

As we were sitting in the diner waiting on Bella, I tuned into her emotions. She was cycling through so many that it was hard to pinpoint exactly what she was feeling. I knew that it was important that she work through all the emotions she was going through, so I wasn't going to manipulate them. I looked over and saw Peter watching me with a questioning look on his face, silently asking me if Bella was alright. I nodded my head and gave him a slight smile.

All of a sudden her emotions locked onto feeling betrayal, anger, frustration, and self-loathing. I quirked an eyebrow and sat and waited a few minutes to see if she would come out of the bathroom before I got up to see how she was doing. Her emotions began settling again, she was feeling calm and acceptance and I knew at that moment that she was going to be fine.

She came out of the bathroom with a soft smile on her face, and looked at me. I nodded my head slightly letting her know that I felt her, but I wasn't going to say anything, and she nodded back at me, and sent me a burst of affection and gratitude.

She sat down at the table and began eating her food while the rest of us tried our hardest not to look at her and watch her eating the vile smelling shit.

"So, how much longer do you think it'll take us to get there?" She asked as she finished her food and took a drink of her soda.

"Shouldn't be too much longer, we're about half way right now, and if we get on the road and take the back roads and break the speed limits, we should cut down our time by quite a lot." I told her as we all stood up to leave. Peter left enough money on the table to cover her food, and a generous tip for the waitress.

Bella nodded and got into the front seat of the truck while I got in the back. I could tell that Bella was still thinking about things, since her emotions started cycling through so fast again. She wasn't really talking, and as we started driving, she reached over and turned the radio on.

Peter looked over at Bella, "Are you alright, Angel?" He asked softly, reaching over and grabbing her hand.

"Yeah Pete, I'm good, just thinking about things." She turned to face him and gave him a smile.

"Well, what are you thinking about? Is it anything we can help ya with?"

She shook her head, "No, not really. It's nothing like that; it's just about how much I've changed. Before I met the Cullen's, I was a completely different person. I was always a strong independent person, and it's like when I met Edward, my personality changed. I allowed him to tell me what to do, and turn me into a subservient person. I lost who I really was, and I realized that the reason Charlie kept looking at me weirdly is because he knew the type of person I was before I met the Cullen's, and he knew that something was seriously wrong when they left me. He was afraid for me, and it took him being killed for me to realize that." She told him as a few tears leaked from her eyes. It made so much sense to me as I thought about it now. I remembered that day in the cafeteria, and her emotions that day. It wasn't long after she started dating Edward that her emotions changed into mostly just a few at a time, but I never noticed it before because I wasn't paying much attention to it.

"It makes sense though, now that you mention it. Your emotions before you started dating him were always chaotic, but after you met him, they stopped being so chaotic, and mostly just stayed on a few at a time. I never noticed it before, but I do remember it now." I told her as I leaned up on the seat feeling like shit for not noticing something like that. Some empath I turned out to be.

"That's exactly what I mean. He changed who I was inside. I would never have let anyone do what he did to me. Before him, I wouldn't have let anyone treat me the way him and Alice treated me. I never would have been friends with them, and Charlie realized that but never said anything to me about it. I think he was afraid that if he said something to me about it, that I would get angry at him, and he wanted to avoid making me angry." She sighed and turned back towards the window. "He was the type of person, that even though he was a police chief, he wanted to avoid a confrontation with me, especially after the Cullen's left me. I was a wreck, and he didn't know how to deal with it, so he mostly avoided me."

"We'll make Alice pay for having him killed Bella. She won't get away with it, I promise you that." I told her, sending her a small dose of love and comfort.

"I know Jazz."

Peter and I were silent after that, neither of us wanted to say anything to upset her, so we both just sat back and watched the trees rushing by as Peter was speeding down the road. I could feel that Peter was pissed off, but there was nothing I could do about it. I knew that if I tried to send him any emotions, he'd be angry with me, so I just left him alone and let him think about what's been said.

_**Peter POV:**_

After hearing Bella talk about what she was like before the Cullen's and then afterwards, it made me want to bring that pussy back to life just so I could kill him myself. He had no right to change her from whom she was into what he wanted in a mate. It wasn't fair to her to have someone she expected to spend her life with to change her like that. I'm hoping that we can get her back to how she was before the asswipe changed her.

I lost track of time as I was driving, thinking about it still when Bella calls my name. "Peter? Are you alright?"

I turn to her and give her a soft smile, "Yea baby, I'm fine."

She quirked an eyebrow at me and it makes me smile, she's starting to be able to read me just about as well as Jazz. "Are you sure, I've been trying to get your attention for a few minutes now. I wanted to tell you that I need to stop and get something else to eat."

I blink, thinking that she was crazy since she just ate when I looked at the clock. I'd been driving for about six hours, lost in my own thoughts. "Alright, we'll stop at the next decent diner I see."

She nods her head and goes back to listening to the music. I glance at Jasper through the rearview mirror and he quirks an eyebrow at me, wondering if I'm alright. I give him a slight nod and send him a dose of frustration. He nods back at me, and that was the end of it. He and I never really needed words to understand each other.

About another hour or so down the road, we finally came up on a diner and I pulled in so Bella could have her human moments. As we're getting out of the car, I hear Emmett's phone ring.

"_**Hello?"**_ He asks with a furrow of his brow. Apparently the caller had their number blocked.

"_**Where do you think you are going Emmett? You know I can't see you, but I know where you were, and you obviously have moved on from there since my army said the house was empty."**_I heard Rose and Jasper growl. I stepped closer to Bella and put my arm around her.

"_**We decided to move, but you'll never know where Alice. Why don't you just leave us alone?"**_ He was about to hang up on her, but she stopped him.

"_**I wouldn't hang up on me right now if I were you." **_We all heard her call out to him, and it made us wonder why she said it.

"_**What do you want Alice? I'm sick and tired of dealing with your psychotic issues and drama."**_

She started laughing madly before speaking, _**"Oh I know you are with Isabella, and I also know that you've apparently gotten Carlisle to side with you. What I want you to know, is that if you want to see him alive, you'll hand over Isabella, and then I'll let you have Carlisle."**_ She hung up after that, and I heard Bella gasp.

She put her hand over her mouth and I could see tears in her eyes. I knew that she was going to start blaming herself. I grabbed her and pulled her to me. "Stop it baby, it ain't your fault, and there's nothing you could do to prevent Alice from doing this insane shit."

She shook her head, tears leaking out of her eyes, "But don't you see, it is my fault, Carlisle was going to come to us, and Alice knew that you all were with me. How is it not my fault Peter?"

I heard Jasper, Rose, and Emmett come closer to us, "Bells, it ain't your fault, no matter what you think." Jasper grabbed her shoulder, "It's all on Alice. She's insane, and out for revenge for something that she perceives that you did, but you did absolutely nothing. Stop giving her the power over you. You know that you'll be changed soon, and then we can finally get our own revenge against her and her whole army."

She turned towards him, looking him in the eyes. I wasn't sure what she was searching for, but apparently she found it because she launched herself at him and hugged him tightly. "Thanks Jazz. You always know what to say to make me feel better."

I could see Rose and Emmett out of the corner of my eye, and they were both looking shameful, and frustrated. I knew they wanted to have another relationship with Bella, but she wasn't allowing them to. She was still furious with them for what they've done to her, and she was refusing to talk to them. While I understood why, I wasn't going to get in the middle of it all. It was their problem, and if they wanted back in Bella's good graces, they'd have to figure out how to do it on their own.

Bella finally let go of Jasper, and turned towards me, "Peter, can you go get me something to eat while I use the restroom? After that, we really need to get back on the road."

I nodded my head and started to walk towards the diner with my head in the clouds. I kept trying to figure out exactly what we were going to do. We knew that Alice and Esme were the ones that were behind all this. We knew that Alice had Charlie killed, and that she was desperate for Bella to die. We just couldn't figure out exactly why she wanted Bella dead except for the fact that Edward was killed when the Volturi found out about her.

It was a terrible situation, and one that I wasn't sure how to get out of. We knew that Bella was going to be changed, and that it would help solve some of the issues, but it wouldn't solve all of them. There was an army gunning for us, and we had no idea as to how many were in the army, and we currently only had five people.

Once I ordered her food, I took it out to the truck where they were all waiting on me. Emmett and Rose were in their truck, while Jasper and Bella were standing outside our truck talking. When Bella saw me, I saw her face light up; my cold dead heart melted at the sight. She just saw me ten minutes ago, but knowing that she missed me, and was happy to see me made me love her even more.

"Here ya go baby." I said, handing her the bag with her burger and fries.

I heard her giggle a little at my scrunched up face, "Thanks Petey." I gave her a mock glare, and turned to Jasper, sending him my annoyance mixed with joy. She was smiling, and making jokes, and it made me feel so much better about things.

"Let's get out of here." Jasper said, trying to get us into the truck with a smile on his face. He could feel how happy I was, and I knew that he wasn't going to let me live it down.

Bella rolled her eyes and got into the truck with a small smile on her face, "Whatever you say Jazzy." I couldn't help it; I started laughing my ass off along with Rosalie and Emmett in their truck. Jasper was standing there gaping at her.

"Oh you'll pay for that little girl." He playfully growled at her, making her giggle.

"I doubt you'd do anything to me Jazzy, you love me too much." She gave him an innocent look that I saw him try not to let get to him.

"Oh, alright Bells." He sighed pitifully, getting into the truck.

Finally we were all in the truck ready to get back on the road. Hopefully we wouldn't have to make that many stops until we got there finally. I knew there were a lot of things we had to accomplish once we got there, and part of me was afraid that we wouldn't have enough time to finish everything before the shit hit the fan with Alice and her army. One could only hope.


	16. Chapter 16

_**Here's Chapter 16. I had help with this chapter from my sister, Lissanrose. Hope you like it.**_

_**I own nothing! **_

**Carlisle POV:**

After getting off the phone with Emmett, I sat there thinking for a few minutes before getting up and started gathering my things. I couldn't stay in this house any longer and deal with Esme and Alice. What they didn't know was I'd been working around Alice's visions for months now, since my mind started to clear up some. I had divorce papers drawn up, and I was going to leave them for Esme to sign. I also had the bank accounts set to be frozen as soon as I left and called Jenks. They wouldn't be able to access any more of my money, which was going to piss them off, but frankly I didn't care anymore.

I walked into mine and Esme's room and began putting some of my clothes into a bag. I took only the clothes that weren't dressy. I was tired of dressing like a 40 something man when I was truly only 23. Marrying Esme changed me completely. I used to be a down to earth, fun-loving guy, but now I'm only a doctor who never does anything except work, hunt, and do what Esme and Alice tell me to. With Edward gone, and Jasper being kicked out, I feel like I'm suffocating. I was never the leader of this family; that role fell to Edward and Alice without me realizing it.

After putting all the stuff I was taking into the car, I looked back at the house I lived in for 5 years and sighed in relief. I always hated the houses we moved into. They were always done to Esme and Alice's design, and I had no say-so in how the house was done, except my office. I gave the house one more look before sliding into the car and leaving this life behind. As soon as I pulled out of the driveway, I called Jenks and told him to put everything in motion; I knew I would be far enough away from them when they finally realized that I wasn't coming back.

I was about three to four hours away from the house when my phone started ringing. I knew exactly who it would be, and I didn't want to answer it, but I knew that if I didn't, she'd continue to call me until I either picked up the phone or threw my phone out of the window. I decided to answer it and see what the midget-boy had to say.

"_**Yes Alice?" **_I answered with a heavy heart. I knew why she was calling, and I never wanted to hear from her again.

"_**Where are you Carlisle? I can't see your future any more, and I'm worried about you." **_Her voice was supposed to sound sad, but I could detect the pure rage in her voice. I couldn't be sure if they knew yet that I had left for good and cut them off, so I wasn't going to say anything, and I was going to just play along.

"_**What do you mean Alice? I'm just out riding around trying to clear my head."**_ I knew she would be able to tell I was lying, but I refused to tell her anything about where I was going or what I was doing.

I heard her snarl softly, _**"You are lying Carlisle, and I demand that you tell me what you are doing, and get your ass back to this house. Your wife is distraught thinking that you have left her, and she doesn't know what she did or why."**_

I knew her tricks by now, she was trying to get me to feel sorry for Esme and go back home, but I wasn't going to let her know that I was onto her. _**"I'll be home after awhile. Tell Esme that I'm not leaving her, and that she did nothing wrong. I just have a lot on my mind and thought that driving around aimlessly would help a little and it is."**_

She sighed, knowing that she wasn't going to change my mind, and I knew that she was going to keep trying to find my future. I kept thinking about Peter, knowing that if I did, she wouldn't be able to see anything I came up with. _**"Fine Carlisle, we will be expecting you in about four to five hours."**_ And with that, she hung up on me. I knew I would have to eventually get rid of my phone so she wouldn't be able to contact me again so I threw it out of the window after shooting off a brief message to Emmett telling him what was going on. I would eventually get another phone down the road when I got closer to them, but I couldn't take the chance of Alice and Esme following me.

After throwing the phone out of the window, I continued to drive, leaving the stereo off and just drove. I was intent on getting closer to Emmett and Peter before I had to think about stopping, even though I had been driving for about ten to fifteen hours now, I was still worried about Alice finding me. I knew I needed to get another phone soon because I had a feeling that Alice would contact Emmett and make them think that she had stopped me and that I was in trouble. Something in my gut was telling me to let them know that I was fine, so I decided to stop in another hour or so and buy a prepaid phone.

I finally found a store that sold prepaid phones and decided that I would wait until I got back on the road before I called Emmett. I wanted to continue to put space between me and my old life. As I got back on the road to lead me towards Montana, I dialed Emmett.

"_**Hello?" **_I heard the weary tone of his voice, and I knew that he probably thought it was Alice calling from a different number.

"_**It's me Emmett." **_I heard a sharp intake of breath, and it confirmed my suspicions that Alice contacted them and told them that she caught me.

"_**Oh thank god Carlisle! Where are you at?"**_ He rushed out, and it made me smile slightly that I was still loved.

"_**I'm about ten or so hours away. I had to toss my phone because Alice called and was demanding me back, and I was afraid that she would somehow track my phone." **_I could tell they were angry at Alice, but there wasn't anything they could do right now. _**"I'm fine though, I left the house before they got back, and I was about five hours away when she finally called me. I've had Alice and Esme removed from my accounts, and even had divorce papers filed." **_For Emmett to be so quiet, I had to have shocked him. No one in the family ever knew that I was preparing for something like this.

I heard the phone being taken from Emmett, and I assumed it was Rose. I didn't know if Emmett was close enough for the others to hear us, but I was surprised by the voice that spoke. _**"I'm glad you are alright Carlisle. We've been worried sick that maybe she had gotten to you, and you weren't able to make it."**_

I gasped softly, _**"Bella is that really you?"**_

I heard her giggle softly, _**"Yes, it's me. No I'm not dead, nor have I ever tried to kill myself. Alice wasn't able to see me because of the wolves in La Push, so she automatically assumed I was dead."**_ By the end of her little speech, I could hear a hard edge to her voice. I knew that Alice was using her visions to manipulate us, but I never truly understood just how much until this point.

"_**Oh god Bella, I'm so sorry that I left you. I'm sorry that I let Edward control me. I was supposed to be the father of the family, and yet I let Edward rule. I knew, deep down, that you weren't his mate, but I let the relationship continue, and never stepped in to help you. I should have known better."**_ I couldn't help it, I just broke down. All the years of keeping my feelings bottled up inside have taken their toll on me, and I couldn't keep them inside anymore.

I heard Bella sigh softly, _**"Carlisle, I never blamed you for leaving like that, I always blamed Edward and Alice. None of the others had anything to do with it except those two, and while Edward is dead, we can all have our revenge on Alice for the pain and suffering she's caused the rest of us." **_I could hear a hard edge to her voice, and even though I am a vampire, it made me shiver in fear. I never imagined that sweet little Bella would have such an evil streak, and if I was being honest with myself, I kind of liked it. I was always the one that was supposed to be good, and never have a wrong thing to say about anyone, and they all expected me to value human life.

"_**Thank you Bella. I just hope that I get there in time. I've been having a strange feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach for the last few hours that I can't explain."**_ I told her, hoping that the others were around and could hear me. I just couldn't explain why I would be feeling this way. It's been so long since I felt like this. The last time I felt like this, was before I changed Edward, and I never could understand what was going on back then either.

"_**Carlisle, what do you mean by a feeling of dread in the pit of your stomach?"**_ I heard Peter ask.

I sighed softly, _**"I can't really explain it, but I just feel like something bad is going to happen, but I can't make heads or tails of it. Ever since I left New York and got farther away, the feeling has gotten stronger and worse."**_

Peter hmm'ed and was quiet for a moment before speaking again. _**"Have you ever had human blood, even a small drop?"**_ When I answered that I hadn't, he began talking again, _**"I think you may have a power, but the animal blood is keeping it suppressed enough where you can't get the full gift, but are just getting little snippets of feelings. It sounds like it might possibly be the gift of preservation. The only way to truly tell if you do or not is to drink human blood, which I know is something that you don't really want to do." **_ He sighed at the end, and I was wondering if I should tell them what I'd been thinking about lately; changing to the human diet. I knew it would make me stronger to help protect them, but I was still leery about changing diets without someone with knowledge to be around to stop me if I go crazy.

I contemplated for a minute longer before deciding to tell them, _**"I want to change diets. I want to be better able to protect my family from what's coming. I'm tired of feeling weak and defenseless, and we need to see if I truly have a gift, and if human blood is the way to go, then I'm all for it."**_ I could tell that I shocked them by the lack of noise coming from their end of the phone, and I couldn't help but grin.

I heard a throat clearing, _**"Well, I guess this is a good thing. I'll be happy to help you change diet." **_Peter said, but I could still tell that he was speechless. After so long of knowing me, and me protesting to the loss of human life, I could imagine how it sounded now that I was all for taking human lives. I couldn't wait till I got there; I'd finally have my family back and be strong enough to help protect them.

**Aro POV:**

It has been a little over four years since young Edward Cullen came here seeking his death by our hands. After seeing his thoughts I was glad to oblige. I did not condone what he and the seer had done to their human pet. I wasn't really happy that the Cullen's had acquired a human into their little family. When Edward came here, I saw that our dear friend Carlisle had obviously been manipulated. I revealed my findings in his thoughts to my brothers and there was a strange reaction from Caius. It appeared that he had some unknown connection to the human girl that I had seen in his mind. Hearing and seeing that Edward in fact believed the girl dead, we decided that it was best to watch the situation for now. The seer, along with the woman that our friend Carlisle had claimed as his mate, was being watched carefully. My brothers and I had a guard member that was able to bypass gifts, thus staying under the radar of the seer.

That leads us to the present. Our guard members that are stationed in the Americas have discovered the human known as Isabella Swan was in fact alive and well. Interestingly enough, she was again in the company of vampires, though not the Cullen's. It wasn't until we received an interesting call in the following days that we decided that it was time to act. I remembered the call that we had received from Alice Cullen and the informative conversation that had followed.

Gianna had sent word to us that Alice Cullen was calling to speak to us. It was surprising, but we decided to see what she had to say to us.

"Ah, Alice, it is so good to hear from you. How is that lovely coven of yours?" I asked.

"I fear that is what I called about Aro. It seems that the wretched human Isabella Swan is alive and able to hide from my visions. She has taking the entire coven save Esme and I. Jasper is gone, Emmett and Rosalie disappeared a while ago and now Carlisle has disappeared. What I wanted to know is whether I should handle the situation for you seeing as you are all the way in Italy, or if you would like to deal with her yourself?" Alice said in a whiny voice that grated on my nerves and my patience, but I answered her in a concerned tone.

"You have given us much to think on dear one, but I believe that this situation is better handled by someone else. We will handle the human Isabella Swan." I said and I thought I heard her sigh in relief. She had no idea that we were watching her and we knew far more of the situation than she had let on. Thankfully the call ended before Caius sent out an annoyed growl. I was concerned that every time the human was brought up, he acted this way. I knew that he despised humans and wondered what the connection was that he had with her, especially considering he hadn't even met the girl.

"Brother, what troubles you so?" I asked looking over to see Caius growling lowly in his throat, his hands gripping the arms of his seat tightly. The question seemed to pull him from whatever trance he was in and turned to look at me.

"Why Aro, are we listening to the insane rantings of that seer when she was directly involved in the uproar her mate cause here some four years ago?" Caius asked. "I care not for humans but there is something that ties me to this human and I demand to know what it is." He was right but I felt it best to let her believe that we were on her side of the matter.

"I am aware of her transgressions brother, just as you are. I felt it necessary to keep up with the charade at least until we meet the human girl and get all aspects of the issue." I explained and I could tell that he saw the reason in my words. It looks like my brothers and I were going to pay the human Bella Swan a little visit, then we would deal with the deranged pixie.

I had already ordered our jet to be ready at the drop of a hat in case we had to leave suddenly, and I thought that this was suddenly. I was afraid that if we left the matter for too long, Alice would see and would take matters into her own hands. I had to see for myself just what was going on with this human girl, and I fully intended to get to the bottom of all this.

It was as we were boarding the plane that my tracker, Demetri came running towards us, "Masters, I have more grave news to impart. It seems that a small army of newborns have been spotted in Forks, Washington. They've killed just one man, a Charles Swan, chief of police there. He apparently was Isabella Swans' father." I heard Caius growling lowly again, and it was starting to make me wonder if his sanity was still intact. I chanced a glance at Marcus, but all I got was a smirk in response. I blinked and did a double take, which caused Marcus to grant me with a soft smile.

"Very well Demetri, thank you, we shall be going now." I stated as I took a seat. I started thinking back over all I had seen in Edward's mind, and the more I recalled, the angrier I became. They used this poor child for their selfish games, and never once took her feelings and thoughts into consideration. I saw where Alice would completely ignore the girl's protests, and drag her to do what she wanted to. They treated this human as if she was a life-sized Barbie doll. Then they took her into the forest and violated her in the worst way imaginable. I may feed from humans, but at least I knew never to play with my food.

After the long journey, we were finally able to begin our trek towards where Demetri said the Whitlock coven was now stationed. I knew going in that they would perceive us as a threat, so I told the guard to hang back some, and let just me and the brothers go ahead. Getting closer, I could smell the intoxicating scent of a human, but I never had the urge to drain her blood, I felt protective of her, and judging by the looks on my brother's faces, I could tell they felt the same way.

Getting closer to the house, I saw Captain Whitlock, Major Whitlock, Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie Hale standing in a united front with Isabella behind them. I lifted my hands, showing them that I meant them no harm, and stopped about a hundred feet from them. "Hello my friends, I can assure you that I am not here to harm Isabella." I could tell that I had shocked them, especially Isabella because she peeked around Peter's shoulder to look at me with wide eyes.

"You aren't? But I thought with you all being the rulers of the vampire world, that I would be killed instantly for even knowing about you all for so long." She said fearfully, gripping the back of Peter's shirt.

I sighed, "While that is our normal process, it has come to my attention that you are the wronged party in all this Isabella." I said, keeping my voice level, but loud enough for her to hear me. I heard her gasp softly and step around Peter to stand at his side.

"What do you mean?" I heard Emmett ask.

"If you will allow me and my brothers to step closer, we can discuss this, and I will tell you everything that I know." I stated, looking towards the Whitlock brothers for permission, to which they nodded. We slowly made our way towards them, and I could smell the fear rolling off of Isabella. "I swear on my unlife Isabella that you are not in any trouble. You are safe and will always be kept safe if I have anything to say about it." I saw her relax slightly, and look towards Peter and Jasper. Jasper gave her a slight nod, to which she relaxed further. I assumed that she was asking him through emotions if I was truthful, and he told her that I was.

"I must tell you that this story starts just over four years ago. Edward came to the Volturi asking for death because he thought you had died my dear. We of course denied him his request, but I had read in his thoughts some things that I find absolutely horrendous. He and Alice had met even before she joined the Cullen coven, and they devised a plan to keep Major Whitlock from his true mate, and to make sure Isabella was killed. It was apparently a vision Alice had that showed that if Isabella and Peter were to ever meet, then they would take Jasper away, so she had planned for her and Edward to keep Isabella as a pet, and then dispose of her after they were done playing with her." I looked at Isabella sadly, showing her that I didn't condone what they had done to her. I heard her gasp again and cover her mouth with her hand. I saw her sway slightly on her feet, so I knew she had understood what I meant. "I'm sorry that you had to go through all that, and I'm here to tell you that I took great pleasure in killed Edward myself and throwing him in the fire. I do not condone what was done to you."

I could feel the shock coming off of Jasper, and I assumed it was because everyone always thought that I let the guard handle the killing of anyone. While that was true, after what I saw Edward and Alice had done to Isabella, I couldn't help myself and went into a rage.

Isabella stepped forward slightly, still holding on to Peter and gave me and my brothers a soft smile. "Thank you Aro."

Had I been human, I'm sure I would have blushed in embarrassment. Never in my thousand years has a human ever thanked me for getting rid of filth. "You are welcome my dear." I told her, giving her a smile.

"I've also seen other things from Edward's mind that is of interest here. It was apparently their goal to have Isabella killed after they left her. They were going to have the red-headed vampire, Victoria, go back and kill her, but it appeared that there was something around protecting her." I gave Isabella a significant look, letting her know that I knew about the wolves. She shook her head fearfully at me, more than likely thinking I would slaughter the whole town. "Worry not my dear, they are safe as well. But since Victoria wasn't able to get to Isabella, she started creating an army, she was going to ambush the protectors, and set a trap for Isabella. She wasn't going to kill her right off, but take her to an abandoned building and torture her for months without telling Alice and Edward what she was doing. She was going to tell them that she had killed you outright, and then keep you as a pet herself." I heard growls coming from everyone around me, including my brothers and the guard that we had with us. I knew this was more information than they had, and I was happy to impart this wisdom to them.

"Victoria is dead though, Jasper and Peter were able to kill her. She followed me to Peter's house after he saved me from not only a broken down truck, and then Victoria's lame ass attempt at kidnapping me. The guys were out hunting one night, and I heard her outside. I called the guys and they came back to the house and killed her. But with Alice around, she's controlling the army now, and sending her newborns to wreak havoc on other peoples' lives." She heaved a sigh, and I could tell she was on the verge of tears. I remembered what Demetri said about her father being killed and it tore at my heart that this young woman has had to go through everything that's happened to her in her short life. "She's called here numerous times wanting Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie back, but they won't go back to her. She has also called and said that she had gotten to Carlisle, but we've recently heard from him that he wasn't that far away from here. She's a psychotic vampire and I can't wait till I'm turned so I can kill her myself, if you'll allow it of course." She gave me that soft smile, and I knew I'd hardly be able to tell this girl no.

"I wasn't aware that Alice was working that closely with Victoria. I've made Alice think that we were going to come here and take care of the problem, but I had already known that I wasn't going to do anything to harm you Isabella. You've been through entirely too much for someone of your age, and I promise you now that I will do anything I can to make things better. I will keep making Alice think I am on her side so I can get more information from her and then pass it along to you." I told her, giving a small smirk as I began to think of a plan to make Alice believe that I killed Isabella.

She nodded slightly at me, "Thanks Aro, it would mean a lot to us. I know that after I'm turned in the next few days, the guys here are going to teach me how to fight, even though I know they don't want to." She smirked at them as they had the grace to look sheepish. "I'm hoping that the end of Alice Brandon will be soon if she keeps coming after me." She got a thoughtful look on her face, and it made me wonder what this intriguing human was thinking about. "I've got a fairly good idea, if you are up to hearing it everyone." She stated, looking at everyone, including the guard who were standing at the tree line. We all nodded at her and waiting for her to finish gathering her thoughts and tell us what her idea was.

"What if we tell Alice that you can't find me, even with your tracker over there?" She said, pointing out Demetri, shocking us all. We had no idea that she knew there was a tracker, let alone which one it was. "She doesn't know that I'm about to be changed, and from what I can tell, my shield is both physical and mental." She grinned, again shocking us all. While we all knew she would be an extraordinary vampire, I wasn't aware that she had any type of gift that powerful, I just thought she was able to keep Edward from reading her thoughts. "We can tell Alice that your tracker can't find me, because if I'm not mistaken, he has trouble locking on to my mental signature?" She asked, quirking an eyebrow at Demetri. He looked at me in bewilderment before slowly walking over towards our little group.

"You would be correct Isabella; I have been having trouble locking on to your mental signature. I'm only able to lock on to those around you, but even then it's difficult as well because you must be unconsciously blocking them as well." He gave her a soft smile, which is more than I've ever seen him do to anyone. He's always been the gruff, no nonsense type of person, and I was excited to see the bond these two would have. I knew she was mated to Peter, but I had a suspicion that she and Demetri would be close.

"That's what I'm saying; I'm not doing this stuff consciously. They are my family, so I automatically block mental powers from affecting them." She said, giving her family a smile. I saw Emmett and Rosalie beam with adoration and pride. Something told me that there was more going on between them than what meets the eye. "So we just tell Alice that he can't track us, and hold off a little longer until I am changed and in control of myself and know how to fight. Then we can all get together and tell Alice that you have me in Volterra, and need her there to stand witness to my sentencing. She'll come running because she thinks she'll get to see me killed finally. When she gets there, you'll have to make it look as real as possible to start off with, but once you touch her and get all the information from her, then we can turn the tables on her."

I was astounded. Never in all my years has there been a human to come up with such an ingenious plan as the one that Isabella just came up with. It was very nearly fool-proof, and if we did things just right, we could eliminate the newborn army Alice has, and then get rid of her too. "I think it's a fine plan Isabella, and one that I can't wait to see come to fruition." I beamed at her with a proud smile. I glanced at Marcus and Caius and saw them both staring at Isabella in shock and awe. Caius was the one that shocked me the most.

"That is a most ingenious plan Isabella, where ever did you come up with a plan like that on such short notice?" He asked, but without the usual sneer and cold attitude towards a human.

She blinked before looking towards Caius. The shock on her face was priceless, and I very nearly doubled over laughing. "My father was a cop my entire life. I've heard of some of the plans and schemes he's had to do to get a criminal. I just used some of what he told me and made the plan up." She told us sadly. Peter wrapped her in his arms and held her to him. I knew that she was aware that her father had been killed then.

"I'm impressed at your quick thinking Isabella, and I look forward to seeing how immortality suits you." He gave her a soft smile, which further shocked us, including Isabella. She apparently had been told about him from the others, and wasn't sure what to do with him being so nice.

I saw her pull away from Peter and look at Caius in confusion, "Please don't take this the wrong way Caius, but can I ask what's going on? I've been told that you hate humans, and only see them as cattle, and yet here you are having a civil conversation with a human, and you haven't sneered at me, and you haven't insulted me." She spoke softly, and I could tell she was sincere and curious in her words.

I heard Caius take a deep, unneeded breath and let it out quickly, "To tell you the truth, I have no idea why I'm being this way. When we were first alerted to you knowing about our world, I wanted you dead, but when Aro showed us what he saw in Cullen's mind, I couldn't stop the protectiveness from coming forth. I've never felt this way before, and I know it's not a mating thing Captain, so you have nothing to worry about." He said the last part to Peter, and I saw him nod back. I was intrigued myself as to why Caius was acting like this, so I turned to look at Marcus, who again had that smile on his face.

"What is it you know brother?" I asked, making everyone turn towards him.

"Oh I know a lot brother." He smirked, causing Isabella to giggle softly, "But as to what you are referring to now is that Isabella is Caius' many greats niece." He said, and everyone stared at him in confusion.

"I believe you are wrong Marcus, my family was killed when I was turned, and it's just not possible that she's related to me in any way." He said sullenly, and I knew that he was hoping that it could be true, but all his family had been murdered when he was changed.

Marcus laughed softly, "Oh I beg to differ there brother. You had a sister that you didn't know about at the time you were changed, and Isabella is a part of that family." He gave Caius a winning smile, and I saw Caius look wide-eyed towards Isabella and smiled at her. Her eyes were just as wide as his, and I could see tears build in her eyes.

"I've got family?" She whispered to herself but we could all hear her. Caius' smile softened at her words, and he walked calmly towards her. When he was standing in front of her, he lifted her face to look at him.

"You have family Isabella and I'll do anything I can to help protect you. You no longer have to worry. You may have a mate, and family in these others, but you will always be family to me, no matter what." He told her before wrapping her in a hug. She began crying softly, and he shushed her softly. It was on this day that I saw my brother in a completely different light, and I wasn't going to complain. He'd been too cold and indifferent for far too long, and it was about time that something good came about in his long life. I was glad to be able to witness this change, and was going to make it my mission that they never have to know what it's like to be without family again. Alice Brandon had better watch out now that Caius has something worth protecting, because she's going to find out real quick that Caius Volturi wasn't one to mess with when it came to his family. I was thoroughly going to enjoy watching Alice when she realized she was royally screwed now.


	17. Chapter 17

_**You guys are the best! It's been difficult to stay motivated in writing this story, but with all you guys sending me reviews and telling me that you are enjoying it has helped a lot. Without you guys reviewing and telling me what you think about it, I highly doubt I'd ever finish this story. Thanks a bunch everyone! Hope you enjoy!**_

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><p><strong>Alice POV:<strong>

I can't believe that stupid human has been able to get around my visions! She should have been dead years ago, but the bitch just won't fucking die! Victoria died trying to get this human, but I paid her back by killing Charlie myself. God did his blood taste good; it was so sweet and thick. She is going to learn real quick you don't mess with me.

I had to call the Volturi and let them know that the human was still alive. I know they will take care of her since she's always able to get around my visions and won't die. They will take the guard and kill her finally and I'll be rid of her for good. She knows too much, and she's taken my arm candy from me. Jasper was always supposed to stay with me so he wouldn't find his mate, and then I was going to kill him.

I was running back towards the house after hunting when my phone started going off. I didn't get a vision about who it would be, and I didn't recognize the number, so I answered it with a weary voice.

"_**Hello?"**_ I asked, stopping in my tracks.

"_**Ah, dear Alice, I've called to let you know that we can't find Isabella. Even my best tracker has been unable to find her." **_I hear Aro say, and I wanted to scream. This stupid human shouldn't be this fucking hard to kill.

I sighed, _**"I'm sorry Master Aro, I've tried looking for her, but something has my visions blocked. I know their last location, but they've since moved and I can't find them."**_ I told him in a whiny voice. I wanted this stupid human dead, and I'd be damned if I let her live a second longer.

"_**It's fine dear, we will simply think of something else. I'm unsure as to why she is able to bypass your visions and why she is able to hide from our tracker, but she will be around we just have to wait it out." **_He said to me, only infuriating me further. He was supposed to be the ruler of our kind and he was willing to let this bitch live just because he couldn't find her. I'd be searching everyone's memories that I came in contact with just to see if I could find her, but he's just a useless lump that should have been killed decades ago.

I had to keep my temper in check while talking to him, unless I wanted to let him into my little game. _**"Has your tracker tried searching for Jasper or Peter, or even Emmett and Rosalie? Maybe it's just that she's able to block us but you could search for them and find her that way. As far as I know, Peter and Jasper are with her, and if I'm not mistaken so are Emmett and Rosalie." **_I told him, hoping that he would find her and get this shit over with. I'm tired of keeping these stupid newborns in line.

He made a noise of agreement, _**"The idea has merit, and we shall begin searching for those four so we can see if Isabella is with them. Thank you my dear." **_He said before hanging up on me abruptly.

I stared down at my phone in shock. No one has ever hung up on me before, and it was a first that Aro Volturi did. I knew that I had to kill Bella, and I planned on making it the most painful, slow death I could think of. She would pay for taking what was mine from me.

I called my army, hoping that they would still be where I told them to be, and that the newborns had stopped fighting. One the first ring, my second in command answered in a gruff tone.

"_**Yes Mistress?" **_ He asked; I could hear the newborns in the background get quiet.

"_**I want to know how the army is doing, and to find out if anything on your end has changed." **_I commanded in a sharp voice.

He sighed softly, and I could tell I wouldn't like what he had to say to me. _**"I'm sorry Mistress, but we are down about fifteen newborns. They kept fighting amongst themselves, and I had to destroy them. They wouldn't listen to me, and were trying to get the others to rebel against you and your wishes."**_

I growled and had to fight with myself to keep from throwing my phone and going to the compound and destroying them all. _**"I suggest you make fifteen more to replace the ones that you couldn't keep in line, and you had best get better control of that damn army or I'll have your head."**_ I said before I hung up on him. I was angry that he couldn't get those stupid newborns to behave. I was going to have my revenge on Isabella, and I was going to enjoy it when the Volturi slaughtered her.

I ran back to the house to find Esme in the living room staring at the wall. I knew that, while she didn't love Carlisle, she was missing his constant presence in her life. It was hurting her for him to have left like that. Yes, she controlled him with her gift, but after her failed human marriage, she thought she deserved the love of a smart, loving, successful man, and she latched onto Carlisle when she woke to this life. She was using him until she found her true mate, and then she was going to kill Carlisle and keep all his money and share it with me. Had Edward survived, we would have killed Emmett, Rosalie, and Carlisle and kept Jasper around as muscle. Jasper's scars and knowledge of fighting would have helped us in keeping people away from us. I knew that had he gone back to human blood, all would be lost to me, and I refused to let that happen. I just had to get rid of Isabella, Carlisle, Emmett, Rosalie, and now Peter before I could get my arm candy back and truly be unstoppable.

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><p><strong>Peter POV:<strong>

Finding out that my mate was the niece to Caius Volturi was shocking, but what was even more shocking was the protectiveness that was radiating from him. In all my years being a vampire, I'd always heard stories from Maria and others I came in contact with that Caius Volturi was a mean son of a bitch and that you never wanted to cross him, but the vampire I see before me is sweet and protective.

I looked at Jasper and he was giving me a smile and nodded slightly at my unasked question; was this all for real. I looked back over to Bella and saw her smiling and talking to the brothers, and I couldn't help the small smile that I had. It was great to finally see my mate so carefree and happy for a change. There was so much shit piling up on both of our plates that it was a wonder that she didn't have a nervous breakdown. I was expecting it after everything that's happened to her, but I wasn't going to dwell on it too much.

Walking over to Bella and the brothers, I put my arm around her waist and gave her a smile only to have her beam up at me. I turned towards the brothers and got a semi-serious look on my face before asking what we were all thinking and dreading. "So what are we going to do about Alice and her army?"

I saw the brothers exchange a glance before looking back at me and Bella with sadistic looks on their faces. "Oh we are going to use Isabella's plan, but we are going to tweak it a little bit. Instead of having Alice go to Volterra, we're going up to our castle in Canada and holding trial there. We're going to make her think that Isabella is on trial for knowledge of our world, and that you all are on trial as well. We know from Edward that Alice was going to use Jasper as arm candy and then keep Edward as her mate." Aro scowled and I could hear Jasper growling lowly at this new information. "I am positive that if we tell Alice that not only is Isabella on trial and set for death, but if we were tell her that Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie are as well that she'll come running. Once we have her in custody, I can get the information about where the army is and have them dispatched quickly after." Aro said in his smug tone. I knew he was serious, and that this could be done quickly. I couldn't wait for it to be done either.

I could see Bella thinking about it, and I was hoping that she would agree with the plan. It was the best plan so far, hell it was the only plan we had really. I wanted Alice out of our lives, and I wanted to be able to be with my mate and help her finish healing.

"I think it's the best plan so far, and I'm hoping that it will work. We can't be sure that she can't see any of us even with my blocking her and Peter here being blocked from her visions, so until this gets done, we can't think about it or make a decision about it." Aro smiled softly and interrupted her.

"My dear, I can assure you that she can't see us. In all the conversations I've had with her she can't see you at all or anyone around you." He assured all of us, and we breathed an internal sigh of relief.

"Well that's good then. We can keep planning and tweaking this plan till it's completely perfect." Bella stated, looking as us all to make sure we were on board with the plan. We all nodded at her and saw the tender smile she gave us all. She hesitated on Rose and Em, and I could tell that she was struggling with forgiving them. She wanted to forgive them because she missed her brother and sister, but the bigger part of her was angry at them still. With them trying to keep us away from each other just made her want to send them away more, but she knew she couldn't because they were Jasper's family and they needed protecting from Alice just as much as the rest of us.

I came out of my thoughts to Aro talking on the phone, and I could tell that he was trying to play Alice by what I heard. He was telling her that he couldn't find us and that his tracker couldn't either. I heard her tell him that maybe the tracker should look for me or Jasper or even Emmett and Rosalie to see if they could find Bella that way.

I could tell that everyone was pissed at the way Alice was talking, but I knew it had to be done this way. For the plan to work, the tracker was supposed to find us and take us to their castle in Canada, and then they'd call Alice and tell her that we'd been found.

Aro finished his phone call and everyone let loose a growl and scowled. The worst was Caius, and I knew that it was because he'd just found out that Bella was his niece, and he was going to make Alice pay for coming after Bella, and I couldn't wait to see what he would do. I was worried about Bella though. After the phone call, she became quiet and reserved. I knew that she was thinking about a way to keep us all safe from Alice and her little army of newborns. I didn't know what to say or do to reassure her that everything was going to be fine when even I didn't know if it was, so I just wrapped my arms around her and tried to give her as much comfort and strength as I could. She wrapped her arms around my waist and gave me a soft smile in thanks and tuned back into the conversations going on around us. With all the talking and planning, I was just wishing that something good would happen to make us all forget about the looming fight coming our way.

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><p><em><strong>Carlisle POV:<strong>_

After driving for so long, I was immensely relieved to finally pull into the driveway that would lead me to my family. After so long of dealing with Esme and Alice, it was a great feeling to be able to just take a deep, cleansing breath.

As I got closer to the house, I saw a bunch of nice cars. I wasn't sure who it was, and it made me worry. The only people I knew that drove cars like that were the Volturi, and I was afraid that Bella would be in trouble. Pulling up in front of the house I saw Bella come rushing out of the house and towards my car. I was smiling as I turned the car off and got out of the car, only to be tackled by Bella as she jumped on me and was hugging me with all her human strength.

"Oh I'm so happy you finally made it!" She said into my shoulder. I could tell that she was fighting her emotions and I wrapped my arms around her and smiled softly.

"I'm glad I was able to make it too Bella. I've missed you so much." I told her, tightening my arms slightly, holding her too me.

By this time everyone had come outside, and when I looked up, I saw Aro, Caius, Marcus, and their guard watching us with soft smiles on their faces; it was confusing and unsettling all at the same time, but I was equally happy that they weren't here to hurt Bella.

I placed Bella back on the ground, but kept my arm around her as we walked towards the house where everyone was standing and watching us. I could see Emmett bouncing slightly, just waiting for Bella to be away from me before he tackled me himself. Out of all the people in my family, Emmett was the most affectionate and vocal of his emotions. I saw the look that Bella gave him and Rose, and it confused me. I would have thought that she would be happy to have Emmett and Rose back in her life, but from what I was noticing it was like she would rather they were gone, but she wasn't going to make them leave.

As we stopped by the front porch, Bella let me go and walked towards Peter with a soft smile on her face. No sooner than she left my side did Emmett come bounding over to me and grabbed me in one of his big bear hugs.

"I'm so glad you were able to escape the psycho midget Carlisle!" He said loudly with a smile. I smiled back at him and hugged him back briefly before I stepped back and looked at everyone that was here. Again it was odd to see the Volturi here with smiles on their face, but the closer I looked, I saw Caius standing close to Bella in a semi protective stance, and it baffled me even more.

I nodded politely to them before speaking, "Hello brothers, what brings you here, if I may ask."

Aro grinned at me before stepping forward, "Ah, dear Carlisle, we are here because Alice called us and tried to get us to kill Isabella." I heard Caius and Peter growl lowly, and I quirked an eyebrow. "Of course we weren't going to kill her right away, if at all. I'd seen in your sons mind the psychotic things him and Alice had planned, and we came here to see the truth for ourselves. When Caius saw Isabella in my projections, he became protective and furious all at the same time. It wasn't until we arrived here that it was found out that he is related to Isabella. Alice has called again and is still trying to find a way to get to Isabella and have her killed. There is so much going on and happening that you are going to want to sit down and have it all explained in more detail."

To say I was shocked was a complete understatement. To find out that Alice was trying to kill Bella made me angry. Bella was such a kind soul and never did anything to anyone to warrant being killed for someone else's sick pleasure. I couldn't understand what was going through Alice's mind when she set out to have Bella killed. Nor could I understand where Esme came into all of this, and I was a little afraid to even ask in fear of them telling me something even more awful than what I had already suspected.

I could only nod to them, which caused Bella to giggle softly and Emmett to laugh. "It's alright Carlisle; we were in the same boat as you when we all first found out. Now we are planning on what to do with everything that's been going on, and Bella came up with a pretty good plan that we're going to use as a start." Emmett said proudly, glancing at Bella who barely paid him any mind except to give him a curt nod.

The more everyone told me, the more confused I was getting. I couldn't understand what was going on with Bella, Emmett, and Rose. It just didn't seem right that she was ignoring them like she was, and that they were just taking it. Normally, Rose would be doing all she could to cause trouble when she was being ignored, and Emmett was usually the one to crack jokes when things got too serious, but neither of them were doing that. And then there was Jasper and Peter who was staying around Bella and Jasper wasn't trying to calm the emotional climate. I swear, if vampires could get headaches, I'd have a huge migraine with the information overload I've been getting since I arrived.

"Alright, how about we take this little party back into the house? The human here can't stand around like all you stone statues!" Bella giggled and turned to walk in the house with Peter and Caius. We all laughed softly at her attempt at joking and followed her into the house and took up spots in the living room. The guard stayed outside to keep an eye on the property in case Alice sent anyone to attack us here.

I sighed softly, pinching the bridge of my nose. "Can someone please explain what else is going on? I'm so confused right now I'd have a migraine if I was human." I glanced around wearily, hoping to get more information.

Bella sighed before looking around the room. It seemed that she was going to be the narrator of this fiasco that's been going on. Everyone gave her a brief nod before she launched into her story. "It starts with Edward, and what he did before he left." She took a deep breath and looked down at her hands. "Carlisle, he raped me before he left me after my birthday. Alice was there and held my hands down as he violated me." I heard growls coming from all the vampires around, including myself, and I knew that there was more to the story, so I tried to keep myself in control.

Bella glanced around at everyone giving them a look to get them to shut up before she continued. "When Alice couldn't see me anymore, Edward went to the Volturi, but he told you all that he couldn't live without me, when in reality, he was going to go to them and make it seem as if Emmett and Rosalie were causing problems in the family, and have them killed. She seems to have forgotten that Aro here can see everything you've ever seen, done, or think, and they killed Edward for his crimes. Aro showed his brothers Edward's wrong doings, but decided to wait it out and see what else Alice had planned. When she called them and told them I was still alive and not dead like she thought, they decided to come here and see what the true story was. Finding out Caius was my uncle was an added bonus to that." She added the last part, sending Caius a sweet smile, to which he returned. I could tell the difference in Caius the minute I saw him, and I had to say it was an amazing change.

I heard Bella take a deep breath again and look at Jasper; the room was immediately blanketed in calm and courage as he nodded at her with a smile, grabbing her hand in an added show of strength. "This next part is a bit harder to explain, and I ask that you keep a level head please." She stated, looking me square in the eye. I was intrigued so I nodded. "Esme isn't who you think she is Carlisle. She's been using you since she awoke to vampire life. When she woke up, she had a power similar to Edward's, except with hers it was thought implanting, or mind fogging if you want. She would say something, or suggest something and your mind would fog over and you'd immediately do whatever she said or asked. You were her primary target in her games. She thought that with her human life turning out the way it did, that she would take advantage of a good looking, intelligent doctor and make him hers. She 'fogged' your mind enough that you believed that she was your mate, and you bent over backwards to do whatever she wanted because you wanted her to be happy."

I was growling lowly by now, learning all this about Alice and Edward was bad enough, but to learn that I had been played for over a century was enough to make me see red. I felt everyone tense up as I started growling, and I could see them trying to make Bella leave, but she just rolled her eyes and walked towards me. Peter was on the verge of snatching her up and hiding her away from me and everyone else, but she glared at him and he stopped in his tracks.

She came over to me and knelt down, placing her hands on mine. "Carlisle, calm down please." She whispered, even though everyone could hear her. As soon as she asked me to calm down, I began to feel myself calm and relax slightly. "I know it's hard to hear about all this now, but I'm telling you that in the end, things will work out for the better and you'll have an even better life than what you had with her. You can finally be the young man you've been wanting to for years now. You can finally go back to college and get a different degree if you want, and you no longer have to play an uptight doctor who adopted five children." She smirked towards the end, causing me to chuckle as her insightful words. She read me so well when all my family never truly knew how I felt.

I saw Emmett and Rose look at me in surprise, and I nodded at them. "She's right, I've always felt like I needed to do something else, but every time I even thought about trying it, Alice and Esme came in and stopped me. The whole 'mind-fog' thing makes even more sense now that I think about it. Every time they stopped me, I felt like I was looking at them through a dirty window for a few seconds before it passed."

Bella smiled as she got up and walked back towards Peter. When she sat down, I briefly saw her shot Em and Rose a smug look but it was gone before I could ask her about it. I was hoping that I could find out what was going on with them, but I needed to know what else was going on.

"What about this plan that you came up with Bella?" I asked her, but I looked around at everyone else as they were beaming at her with proud smiles.

She blushed softly before she began detailing how they were going to lure Alice into a trap. As I sat their listening, I was proud of her. She used Charlie's knowledge as a cop to come up with this plan that was nearly flawless. It only needed a few more tweaks before it became a foolproof plan. I couldn't wait until this was all taken care of so I could finally live the life I've wanted to live for the last century. I was finally going to be the 23 year old that I am.

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><p><em><strong>I hope you guys enjoy. I'm slowly but surely working on the story and I'm hoping you all stay with me till the end. :) Thanks everyone for the great reviews.<strong>_


	18. Chapter 18

**Your reviews are amazing. While I don't update all the time, I go back and read the reviews I got and it makes me want to write more. I don't have any excuses as to why I don't update often, all I can say is I get busy doing other things and just completely forget about my story. I want to say thank you for all your reviews, your story alerts and author followers; they mean the world to me. You guys are great.**

**I own nothing! Enjoy!**

**Bella POV:**

With all the drama going on around me lately, I haven't had a chance to sit back and just think by myself. We've been coordinating with the Volturi about the trial for Alice, talking to Carlisle about what he went through with Alice and Esme, and I've been avoiding Emmett and Rosalie. I knew it was wrong of me to avoid them like I was but be friendly with Carlisle, and I wasn't entirely sure why I was acting like this, other than the fact that they tried to keep me from Peter.

I knew Peter was worried about me, as was Jasper, but I didn't know what to do. I felt like they were going to try something else, and I was just expecting the other shoe to drop so to speak.

I was so lost in my own thoughts that I didn't hear anyone coming into my room that I jumped when I felt a cold hand on my shoulder.

"Cara mia, what's wrong child?" Uncle Caius asked, sitting down next to me.

I sighed softly and snuggled up against him, "I'm just thinking about things Uncle Caius." He wrapped an arm around me, holding me tight and letting me work through things before I talk to him. "I know it's wrong of me to avoid Emmett and Rosalie like I do, and yet I'm all friendly with Carlisle. I just don't trust them. When they first came around, they tried to keep me and Peter apart. I'm afraid that if I give them another chance, they'll try it again because they think they know what's best for me. They only see a human drinking vampire mated with a human. They don't see me as anything other than a stupid human that they have to try and protect." I sighed, laying my head on Caius' shoulder.

"Cara, I understand that when they first came around that they tried keeping you two apart, but you have to understand that they value human life, and they thought that he was going to hurt you. Add into the fact that they've been under Esme's power for so long, it was an inevitable outcome." He told me, rubbing a hand up and down my arm to help sooth me. As I began thinking about everything he said, I realized that he was completely right.

I sighed softly, "You're right. I shouldn't hold it against them, but it just hurt to know that they were trying to do that." I sat up, running my hand through my hair, "I'll go talk to them and try and clear the air. I've seen the looks they give me, and I've ignored them because I was angry."

I got up from the bed with a heavy sigh and walked to where I knew Emmett and Rosalie were at. I knew this conversation was a long time in coming, but I just wanted to hold on to my anger, even though I knew it would be detrimental to our fight.

I knocked gently on their door and heard a soft 'enter' from within. I opened the door slightly, peeking around the door, "Hey guys, do you mind if I come in and talk to you for a few minutes?" I asked, noticing the anticipation and longing on Emmett's face, and the icy anger on Rosalie's.

"Sure Bella, what's up?" Emmett asked softly, patting the couch beside him.

I took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "I wanted to say that I'm sorry I've been avoiding you guys lately. I know it was childish, and mean, and completely wrong of me, considering I've practically forgiven Carlisle." I said in one breathe with my head bowed.

I felt the couch on my other side dip slightly, "Actually, it's us that should apologize to you Bella. When we first got to Peter's house and saw you and him together, I panicked." Rosalie said softly. "I didn't think you were really his mate. Alice had always said that Edward was your mate, and seeing you and him together it made me angry because I thought you were betraying someone I had considered my brother. I realized after you started avoiding us that you and Peter are definitely mates, but I couldn't bring myself to verbalize it, and for that I am sorry Bella." She continued in a meek voice.

I turned towards her in surprise. Never once did I think about how they would feel seeing me mated to Peter. It wasn't the fact that he was a human drinker, it was because she thought I was betraying Edward. "Wow, I have to say that I'm surprised. I thought you were trying to keep him and I apart because he was a human drinker. I never thought that it was because of Edward." I whispered out, my mind having a hard time comprehending what she told me.

I heard Emmett chuckle softly beside me, "Bella, why would be keep you from him because he's a human drinker? For one, he technically has better control of his bloodlust than we do. Secondly, he's never drank from an innocent person before. He's always been the criminal or terminally ill type of drinker. There wouldn't be any reason for us to keep you guys apart just because he drinks from humans. We understand that everyone has their own opinions on their food source, but we've never had a problem with Peter." He wrapped an arm around me, pulling me into his side. "As much as we despised Edward, and how he treated your relationship, he was still our brother, and in our hearts and minds, we felt that you were betraying his memory by being with Peter. Even after all we had heard about what he did, we just couldn't separate what you said about him from the person we knew." He finished explaining with a soft voice. I could understand where they were coming from though. After spending their entire vampiric life with Edward, and knowing how he was with them, and then having me come around and totally screwing up their view of him.

"I understand where you guys are coming from. And I'm sorry I had to ruin your view of him." I said in a soft voice.

"Bella, you didn't ruin our view of him, he did that by what he did to you and the family. He was never the person he made us believe him to be. Between him, Alice, and even Esme, our views of the family have been skewed big time. We all thought that we were this one big happy family, but in reality that was the furtherest thing from the truth. Only Carlisle, Emmett, and myself are the only ones in the family that was a hundred percent truthful with everyone about who we were." Rosalie stated, grabbing my hand in hers. "We understand that you've been angry with us, and you have every right to be. We were the ones in the wrong by trying to keep you guys apart. We only hope that you can forgive us for our stupidity, and that we can be family again."

I gave a soft smile, "We've always been family, but I was angry. No matter how angry I've been, you've always been my family. And hey, family fights, don't they?" I asked, grinning at them causing them to both chuckle softly.

"You're right, they do fight, and they make up, and the cycle repeats." Emmett said with laughter in his voice. We sat there talking for a while, waiting on everyone else to come back. It felt good to finally have my big brother and sister back.

_**Peter POV:**_

Having heard what my Bella and Caius were talking about, I thought it best to get everyone out of the house so that she could talk to Emmett and Rosalie. I knew that she was having some problems with her feelings regarding them, but I also knew that she wouldn't listen to me.

"How about we go hunt for a bit?" I asked everyone as I heard Bella walk towards Emmett and Rosalie's room. Everyone agreed and we all walked outside. The Volturi brothers going towards where their guard was, and me and Jasper walking towards the woods, we agreed to meet here in about two hours and went our separate ways.

After about half an hour of running towards what I assumed to be something for Jasper to choke down, he stopped and turned towards me.

"Pete, what are we going to do with this whole situation? With Alice and that damn army, the Volturi brothers being here, and one being related to Bells, and what we found out about Esme, I feel like my world is being turned around on its axis." He sighed, sitting down on a fallen tree.

Unknown to us, Carlisle had followed us and came out of the woods, "We're going to do what any family would in this situation; we're going to work together to fight this. Having Caius being related to Bella is going to work out better for us in the end if you think about it. We won't have to worry about them trying to eliminate us because she knows about us, and they are going to help us get rid of the threat to our family." He sat beside Jasper, placing an arm around his shoulders. "I know this situation is completely fucked up." Jasper's head snapped up and looked at Carlisle as if he had two heads, causing Carlisle to laugh, "Yes, I just said that Jasper. But I'm serious, we're in a fucked up situation, but it's going to work out in the end. We've got our family with us, we've got the Volturi here, and I'm sure if we made some phone calls we'd have others here who would be willing to help us." He finished softly. We both knew that Jasper was having a hard time working through this.

"You're right. I know this is a fucked up situation, and I know that we'll get through this, but it just doesn't make sense. I never expected the sweet Alice and Esme to be capable of something like this. I always knew that Edward was hiding something, but I could never pinpoint what it was so I ignored it. Never once in all my years with the family did I ever suspect Alice and Esme though, that's what's making me so stressed out. If we never once knew something was wrong with them, how are we ever going to get through this?" He asked us both in desperation.

"Jasper, man, all I can do is tell you that no matter what happens, we will get through this. It's going to take some time, some planning, and some extreme fierceness, but we are going to make it through. We're going to change Bella soon, and we'll start making those phone calls to have backup, and the Volturi will call more of their guard here. You've got to stop doing this to yourself. Think about that woman back at the house that's counting on her big brother to help train her. Think of all that she's gone through, and use that anger and hatred towards the end goal; Keeping her safe!" I told him, hoping that using her as a catalyst would help him.

No sooner were the words out of my mouth did I see a drastic change in him. I heard a growl building in his chest. "I refuse to let her be hurt any more in this than what she already has." He turned towards me, and I could feel the emotions he was feeling, the God of War was going to be making an appearance by the time this fight was upon us, and for that I was glad I was on his side.

_**Jasper POV:**_

Hearing Peter say all that about the upcoming fight, I felt something break inside me. There was no way in hell I was going to let Alice and Esme, or their pansy army take my sister away from me. I was going to do anything and everything in my power to keep her safe and protect me family.

I got up from the fallen tree and looked towards Peter, "I'm no longer hunting animals, I need to be stronger for this fight." I turned towards Carlisle, "I'm sorry, but I just can't keep hunting animals when my sister is in danger." I told him, hoping that he wouldn't condemn me for this.

"Jasper, you have nothing to apologize for. To be honest, I was going to pull Peter aside in a few days and ask him to take me hunting for humans. I know that he doesn't hurt innocent people, and that's how I want to be. If it helps protect this family, and makes us stronger, who am I to say don't do it?" He asked with a sly grin on his face. I could feel his playfulness and amusement, but underneath it all, I could feel his frustration and agitation.

We both turned towards Peter with mixed emotions. While I knew he would be ecstatic about me going back to my natural food source, I was unsure how he would feel about taking Carlisle hunting. It wasn't that he didn't like Carlisle, it was the fact that if things got out of hand, we'd have to subdue him, and I knew that Peter hated when that happened.

"Well, how about we get started on that now?" Peter asked with a smile and took off towards town with us following him.

As we got closer to town, I could hear the heart beats, and smell the blood, and I felt my demon rattling in his cage. I knew this is what I wanted, but I also knew that I had to keep myself in check. I couldn't slaughter the whole town, or I would alert our enemies to our whereabouts. I followed Peter towards what could only be classified as the bad part of town towards an old warehouse.

"There are about twenty people in here. They are hiding out here because they've raped, murdered, tortured, abused, or are drug addicts." He stated as he started walking around the building looking for a way in that wouldn't alert them to our presence. He found a window that had the glass busted out and went through it. We followed and as soon as we were inside I could smell the difference in all the people around.

I walked away from them to find myself something to eat, not wanting to get too close to Carlisle for his first human hunt. I could smell the drugs pumping through some of the people here, making venom pool in my mouth. It had been so long since I'd last had human blood. I found two people away from the rest of the groups, and the emotions coming from them rattled my demon. I could hear the whispers of them talking about the last girl they raped and murdered, and it made me think of Bella, and what she went through. I could feel myself slipping, letting the demon out as I snuck up behind them. Snapping their necks, I bite down harshly on the closest neck, letting the blood drain slowly down my throat, sating my bloodlust.

After the first one was dead, I tossed him to the side and turned towards the second one, quickly latching on to his neck, drinking him down quicker than the first. As I finished, I turned towards where I could feel Carlisle and Peter standing. Carlisle was covered in blood, emitting slight shame and feelings of acceptance and fear. I knew he was ashamed of feeding off humans after so long of adamantly refusing to kill a human, but his fear was about what everyone would think of him. He was worried that Emmett, Rose, and Bella would turn him away because of this.

"Let's head back to the house." Peter said, clapping Carlisle on the back lightly. "It'll be fine Carlisle, you'll see." He told him, sounding smug. Carlisle nodded and we all turned towards home. I just prayed that things would be alright once we got back.

_**Esme POV:**_

How dare he leave me! Once I get a hold of him again, he'll wish he'd never left me high and dry. He never should have been able to get out of my fog. I couldn't understand how he did it, but once I find him again, I'll make sure he's so far under my fog that he'll never even think of leaving me again.

I heard the front door slam, and an enraged shriek so I made my way downstairs, wondering what pissed Alice off this time. "What's wrong Alice?" I asked as I came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs.

"Those stupid Volturi animals can't find a simple human! Apparently their tracker can't track her, and I had to give them the idea of tracking Jasper, Peter, Emmett, or Rosalie. Stupid idiots!" She shrieked again, flinging herself down onto the sofa.

"It'll be alright Alice, we'll finally have things back to the way they were once she is dead. I'm afraid we'll more than likely have to have Emmett and Rosalie killed as well. We can't let them back into the family once we have Carlisle and Jasper back under our control." I told her, my voice going cold just thinking about losing Carlisle again.

Alice sighed, "You're right. They are loose cannons that we can't afford to have here anymore. Peter will have to be killed as well. Him and Jasper are too close, and I don't want to run the risk of having Jasper running off to him if things get tough again."

I nodded my head, barely listening to her whining. She just couldn't understand the bond that one shares with their Sire. While I knew of the bond, I was able to manipulate it to my desires, but Alice would never know what it felt like to have the Sire bond. I couldn't say anything to her though. I tried once and she just screamed and ranted at me for an hour about the fact that her Sire had been killed and that if I wasn't careful, she'd do the same thing to mine.

I sat there feeling numb. With Carlisle gone, I didn't know what to do with myself anymore. It used to be that he would go to work, and I would putter around the house, decorating a room, or out in the garden, but since he left, I haven't felt like doing any of those things. He wasn't here to tell me that he liked whatever I was doing. Before he would come to where ever I was and tell me what a good job I was doing, so I had a sense of purpose.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't know Alice had gotten up until she snapped her fingers in my face, "Esme? What is wrong with you? Carlisle leaves and it's like your mind turned to mush. Snap out of it, we have work to do if we are to make sure Carlisle and Jasper are back where they are supposed to be. We've got to look in on the army that I'm going to be sending to where that human whore is, and then we're going to have to find a way to lock Carlisle and Jasper up until we've got them under our control once again." She rambled out, not even paying attention to anything other than her own train of thought. Sometimes I just want to kill her and be done with it, but I couldn't because the army wouldn't listen to me, so I had to bide my own time till I would be able to finally get rid of the stupid pest, I just hope it will be soon, I'm not sure how much more I can handle of her bossing me around like a little child.

If I knew that my power would work on her, I would have had her under my fog since day one, but as soon as I met her, I knew that my fog wouldn't work on her because of how her own power worked. Maybe once we have Carlisle and Jasper back, I'll fog Jasper's mind and have him kill Alice, then I'll have both Jasper and Carlisle at my beck and call. Life would be perfect after that, I'll just have to wait and see what happens when the time comes.

_**Bella POV:**_

After our talk, the three of us headed downstairs for me to get something to eat and to watch a movie while we waited for everyone else to get back. I was missing Peter so much right now. I knew that we all needed to talk, and figure out when I was going to be changed, but I just wasn't sure when yet. I could feel that I needed to wait for something I just wasn't sure what I was waiting on.

As soon as I ate my food and sat down on the couch, I saw and felt Em and Rose tense up and both turn towards the front door. I was starting to worry because both their eyes changed to pitch black, and Em started growling low in his chest. Him and Rose both got up and walked towards the door, with Rose keeping me in her sights. I got up to stand with her, knowing that if danger was coming that she would want me next to her so she could protect me better.

As soon as the door was open, Rose crouched down in front of me while Em went barreling out into the yard. I saw four vampires coming towards us, and I was afraid that my big brother was going to get hurt. I knew he wasn't going to be able to take on all four vamps by himself, and Rose was busy protecting me. Our family was too far away hunting so they wouldn't be able to come either.

No sooner than I thought we were in big trouble did two of the vamps start towards where Rose and I were standing. I was backed up as close to the house as I could get, and Rose went to attack one. As she was attacking the one, his friend started coming towards me. I knew I was in trouble, but I couldn't do anything except stand there. He growled and came at me, but I jumped out of the way at the last minute, landing hard on my left arm, hearing a sickening crack when I landed, causing me to cry out in pain. All the vamps in the area turned towards me, the four new vamps trying their hardest to get to me.

As my world began fading into darkness, I saw six other vampires coming towards us that I didn't recognize, but once I saw them helping Em and Rose out, and heard them yelling that they were here to help and that our other family was coming now, did I finally let the darkness take me, knowing my brother and sister were safe for now.

**I know this is a cliffhanger, but I promise you, chapter 19 is going to explain it all and you'll have more twists and turns in this story. I hope you enjoy it! **


	19. Chapter 19

**Here is chapter 19 as promised. I had some help coming up with the ideas for this chapter, and I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did coming up with it and writing it. This chapter is going to be bringing in something new; a new twist to the story that I hope you all enjoy as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank you all for your wonderful reviews and favorite/alerts you've done. You guys make me smile each time I get a new one. I'm amazed that this story has garnered so much attention. Thanks!**

**I own nothing!**

_**General POV:**_

Five years ago, my life changed forever. I knew it was going to change, and I welcomed it. For a human, I had a really shitty life. Given up for adoption as soon as I was born, then adopted into a family that used me as their personal slave; I cooked, cleaned, worked, and did everything for them, and got nothing but grief in return.

At the age of 7, I began having really fuzzy visions of a girl who looked just like me, and at first I thought it was me, but as I began seeing her more and more in my visions, I realized that she wasn't me. I never knew who she was, but I saw how she lived with her mother, and was basically the mother taking care of the child. I would see her on a plane going towards where her father was, and see all the happy times she had with him. I would only see her in my visions, and sometimes I would think it was my mind playing tricks on me because of how my life was. I always thought that maybe it was my mind showing me a different life to the one I was leading.

It wasn't until my 15th birthday did the visions change even more. I started seeing more and more things happening, even my own life now. I could see what my adoptive parents were going to make me do that day, or I'd see this girl working her ass off to keep the bills paid or food in the house. I started feeling sorry for the girl because she may have had a mother that loved her, but her life was essentially just like mine. She stopped going to see her father and stayed at home to take care of her mother. Even after her mother got married, she refused to go see her father because she thought he didn't want her anymore after being away for so long. I envied her though after she turned seventeen.

I saw her talk with her mother and step-father about moving in with her father, I saw her plane ride to where her father lived, I saw that first day in Biology and the reaction of the copper-headed guy; I saw everything about her life in one vision. I saw the love, and family, and the romance, then I saw the heartbreak, and what was going to happen next. I couldn't have stopped it even if I wanted to. I never knew who this girl was to me, or why I was seeing her life like I was, but my heart broke for her. No one should ever have to go through what she went through. To see someone be so violated and tortured, and not be able to stop it is like pouring battery acid down your throat.

It's at this point that my life changed even more, three months after the girl in my visions and myself both turned eighteen. I'd been walking home from work one night when I stumbled upon a guy, and not just any guy, but the copper-headed guy and the pixie from my visions. By now though, I knew what he and his entire family was; vampires that only drank the blood of animals. I wasn't afraid of his family, but I was terrified of him. Somehow he knew me, him and his little pixie, but I didn't know how and I wasn't going to ask.

"Hello Zarah, my name is Edward, and this is Alice." He told me smoothly, giving me a dazzling smile that I saw him give the girl from my visions a thousand times, but it didn't affect me like it did the girl in my visions.

"Hello there. What can I do for you two?" I asked, hoping to keep my voice calm and my heartbeat down. I didn't know what they wanted, but something in the back of my mind told me that I was in deep shit with no way out.

They glanced at each other, both nodding slightly and turned back towards me, Alice spoke this time. "Oh, nothing much really, just this." She stated as both of them pounced at me. I felt their teeth pierce my skin and one of their hands cover my mouth to keep my from screaming. I knew then that they were changing me, and I couldn't stop it.

As I started burning with the venom, I began having visions of what was going to happen in the next few years, and I wanted to be sick at what I had to witness. I saw more people that I hadn't met yet being hurt, I saw the same girl running for her life, I saw the copper-headed guy, Edward, going to some guys on thrones and being killed; I saw my life for what it was going to be now, and quite frankly, I hated the way things were going to turn out.

As I started feeling the burning move towards my heart, I could hear what was going on around me, I heard Edward talking to Alice, and I was afraid of them even more now. I strained my ears to hear them, hoping to glean even the smallest bit of information.

"Do you think she'll be anything like the other one?" I heard Alice ask with hatred in her voice, and I couldn't understand why. What did I ever do to her to make her hate me so much.

"I'm not sure Alice, I can't hear her either. It's frustrating and makes me wish we'd just killed her instead." Edward growled out, causing me to stiffen slightly. I knew that as soon as I finished changing that I had to get out of here and away from them or else I was going to be ash. I started seeing little snippets of how to get away from them, and decided to use those visions to my advantage. I was going to get away from these freaks and try and make a life for myself somewhere else; I was going to find all the people from my visions if I could and hope to give them a better life and give them the family they've been denied all along.

I heard Alice tell Edward that I would be waking soon, and I knew what I had to do after that. I knew that I would have some supernatural powers, I just prayed that they worked as I want them to so I could get away from the freaks. I wasn't going to be at their beck and call for the rest of my unlife.

As soon as I felt my heart stop, and heard Edward and Alice back up towards what I assumed was a wall, I sprang into action. I threw my hands up towards them, knowing that from my visions, my shield should come out and wrap around them, holding them in place.

I heard Alice screech and I could feel her trying to claw at the shield, but I ignored her in favor of watching Edward. I saw him smirk and relax, keeping his eyes on me.

"It's alright Zarah, we won't hurt you, you can let us out of this and we'll explain everything to you." He said with a smile on his face as if he was trying to dazzle me, but I knew what he was going to do. He was going to try and keep me pliant and submissive to his whims, and I wasn't going to allow that.

I snarled at him, thinking that I want the shield around them to shrink and make it harder for them to move. As soon as I thought it, I could see Alice's panicked face and the smirk on Edward's face fall. Neither of them expected me to have this much control. "I don't think so Edward. I know everything now. I know you changed me into a vampire in the hopes that I would be like some other girl that I've seen in my visions." I told him, noticing how he turned sharply towards Alice and hissed but ignored him and continued talking, "I also know that my visions are different than Alice's here. I also know what you did to the other girl that you were hoping I would be like, and I refuse to ever be treated like that. I hope you burn and rot in hell for what you've done. I refuse to let you near me." I told him as I turned and took off out the door; I just hoped my shield held and I could get away from them.

After getting away from Edward and Alice, I just ran, swam, drove, and did anything I could to make sure they couldn't find me. I know from my visions of the other girl that Alice's visions were subjective and decision based, so I didn't make any decisions on where I was going or what I was doing. And I did this for five years, only stopping long enough to find the other people from my visions. I knew I would need them in the coming years, and that the other girl from my visions would need our help eventually.

That leads us to where we are now, standing in a field next to our house in southern Montana. I looked around towards my coven and had to smile. I had changed all of them with ease, knowing from my visions that they would be helpful towards what we were working towards made it easier to change them without draining them. I changed Viktor first because he tried to save my life. He tried to take on two vampires thinking I was a damsel in distress and got hurt in the process. After Viktor, I changed Gabriel. Gabriel was a homeless man starving, and was getting beat up by a couple high school kids, so I changed him. What hurt me the most was changing Abigail, Cierra, and Robin. Viktor, Gabriel, and I had been out hunting one night when we all heard screaming. We went towards where we heard it from and I lost my cool. I killed every man in the building and changed Abigail, Cierra, and Robin because I couldn't leave them there, and because I knew that they were important to me and could help us in our fight that was coming up.

I began training them all as soon as we were able to. I had been taking Martial Arts classes before I was changed, and I watched enough movies to know different fighting techniques. After a few years, my coven and I began searching for the girl from my visions when I got hit with another one that nearly dropped me to my knees. The girl had finally found her mate in Captain Whitlock from the Southern Armies, I knew who he was from all the other vampires we'd met on our way, but at the moment it was just her and two other vampires against four. I knew that with the girl being human that she would be in even more danger, so I told my coven we had to help them and we all took off towards where I thought they would be.

We got there in time to see the four vampires advancing towards the other two vamps and the human girl. I noticed that while she was scared, she wasn't showing fear, and I admired that about her. As we went towards them all, I saw the human girl throw herself to the side and land hard on her arm, breaking it and crying out in pain. It drew everyone else's attention towards her, letting my coven have time to come in and help dispose of them. I knew the girl was going to pass out form pain, but she was trying hard to hold on for fear of her family, so I set her at ease.

"We're here to help you get rid of these four, then we'll explain what we're doing here. I promise that we won't hurt you or anyone else in your family." I said, looking straight at the human girl. I saw her give a terse nod as she lost consciousness.

I stayed where I was at the other two vampires rushed to her side, the female looked towards the bigger one, "She broke her arm Em." She choked out, picking up the girl gently in her arms. The bigger guy turned towards us.

"I don't know who you are, or where you came from, but I have to say thank you for helping us. Without you, we'd be dead and Bella would have been killed as well." He said, walking slowly towards us, "My name is Emmett Cullen, and the blonde is my wife and mate Rosalie." He held out his hand.

I grasped his hand, "My name is Zarah Swanson, and this is my coven. Viktor and his mate Abigail, Gabriel and his mate Cierra, and Robin." I said, pointing towards each one as I said their names. "I know you are probably wondering how we found you, and knew you needed our help, but I think it best that we let the rest of your family get here, and for the girl, Bella, to wake up. It would be easier to say our story only once." I said softly.

"You're right. Everyone should be back in a little bit. You guys can come in, just please don't get too close to Bella. Her mate and other brother would kill us if anything else happened to her." He said grimly.

No sooner than he said the words, we all heard two very loud growls followed by other weaker growls, "What the hell is going on here?" I heard the man I knew to be Captain Whitlock demand.

I saw Emmett gulp and sigh softly, "While you all were gone, four vampires came up and attacked, Rose was trying to stay by Bella to keep her safe when these other six here showed up. They helped us, and got rid of the other four." He told them, causing everyone to turn towards us.

"My name is Zarah, this is Viktor and his mate Abigail, Gabriel and his mate Cierra, and this is Robin. We are the Swanson coven, and I have visions." I heard them all snarl and I held up my hands, "I know you know someone who has visions, but mine are different. Mine are set in stone with two outcomes. I saw a vision of them being attacked, and had we not shown up, not only with Emmett and Rosalie be dead, but the girl, Bella would have been turned and used in a slave trade sex ring." I told them honestly, knowing that they didn't like secrets being kept from them.

We were all so wound up that we failed to notice the door opening, "I trust her and her coven. They saved us and if you don't like it, then you can just kiss my ass. I'm not going to turn away someone that helped us." I whipped around and saw Bella standing there with a fierce look on her face.

I saw her mate run towards her, "I trust her too, she saved my Bells and our family, and if her vision is anything to go on, then I suggest we let them stay." He said, wrapping Bella in his arms and sighing deeply.

I heard someone clear their throat, and I turned towards them, recognizing him as the head of the Cullen coven. "My name is Carlisle Cullen, I want you thank you for protecting my family." He said as he held out his hand.

"You don't have to thank me Carlisle." I told him as I shook his hand. "I know you are all probably wondering my story, and I will tell you all as soon as the rest of your family gets here."

I saw them all nod and walk towards the house, Bella and Peter stayed on the porch, wrapped in each other arms. "Thank you." I heard Bella say softly.

"You don't have to thank me Bella. Once you hear my story, you'll understand completely why I helped." I told her, knowing that I was confusing her, but she nodded and snuggled into Peter's chest.

I walked inside, taking in my surroundings and smiled softly. This is what I always wanted, a place that felt like a home. I envied Bella even more now, but I didn't let it show. I could see my coven off to the side, trying to keep out of the way of everyone else. I heard Carlisle talking softly to Bella as he wrapped her arm in a cast. It surprised me that he had the supplies here, and that he knew what he was doing. Even though I'd have visions of his family, I never knew what they did all day except for the younger ones going to school. I watched in fascination as he worked quickly and how at ease they all were together.

No sooner than thinking that, I heard others approaching the house and I felt my coven stiffen, but a sharp glare from me caused them all to settle down and relax again. The door burst open, with none other than Major Jasper Whitlock storming in with a blonde vampire close behind him. Both of them were near snarling, "What the fuck is going on around here?" They both growled, catching sight of me and my coven.

I raised my hands, showing I meant them no harm. "My name is Zarah, and this is my coven, Viktor, Abigail, Gabriel, Cierra, and Robin. I have visions that are set in stone, but shows me two outcomes. I had a vision or Emmett and Rosalie being attacked, and Bella was changed and given to a sex slave trade ring. We were close enough to be able to help them, so my coven and I ran here and helped them take out the four vampires that attacked." I summarized for them, seeing that the two snarling vampires stopped dead in their tracks and turned sharply towards Bella and Peter, seeing them nod, I saw Jasper and the other vampire relax slightly, knowing that they were wanting to know about me and my coven. "Once everyone is here, I'll explain more about me and my coven, and why we risked our lives for your family. I'd rather only just explain it once, seeing as it's a long story and not something that should be told more than once." I gave them a slightly pleading look, hoping that they wouldn't make me tell my story more than once.

They all glanced towards each other, silently communicating and nodding. I let out an unneeded breath of relief and walked towards my coven. I had noticed that Cierra and Abigail were tending to a couple bites that their mates had received, but I wasn't worried about them. I was mostly worried about Robin, but I soon found out that she was fine. As I turned around, I heard and saw more vampires coming inside, and when they saw me, they immediately were on guard and ready to pounce, but Bella put a stop to it.

"Oh for the love of God! I swear, if anyone attacks them, I'm going to be seriously pissed off, and you all know what happens when I get pissed off! Chill out, they saved me, Em, and Rose and if you all would sit your asses down, you'd understand eventually instead of jumping to conclusions! I swear, you are all like a bunch of children sometimes!" She glared at a few of them when they went to protest, but they shut their mouths with an audible click and huffed a sigh at her. She turned towards me, giving me a warm smile, "We're all here Zarah, if you'd like to explain now."

I took a deep, unneeded breath, and gave those of my coven a look that said to keep quiet until I finished. "To start off, I am Zarah Swanson, I was changed five years ago." I saw the disbelieving looks on their faces, and I just rolled my eyes, "I won't get into that just yet, because it's not a pretty story. I will tell you that I was taken from my birth parents when I was born. I was told that my birth parents were told I was a stillborn and that my older twin sister was the only one that survived. I was taken to a family that had apparently paid money on the black market for me; the people who bought me used me as a slave from the time I was old enough to do things. I cooked, cleaned, shopped and did everything for them. I was about seven years old when I first began having blurry visions. I could never make out what was in the vision except this girl who looked almost just like me." I said, keeping my voice calm and not looking at anyone while I spoke. It was hard recounting my childhood, but I knew that if I wanted them to trust me, I'd have to tell them. "I saw things about this other girl that I envied, she had a loving mother, and a father that she saw when school wasn't in session. As I got older, I began seeing more of her in my visions, seeing more of her surroundings and things going on around her. I saw her talking to her mother and step-father about going to live with her father; the plane ride and the trip to her father's house; her first day of school." I glanced at Bella and saw that she was catching on to what I was saying, and I hoped with everything in me that she wouldn't reject me once I finished my story.

Glancing at my coven, I saw that they were enraptured in my story as well, seeing as I only told them the basics of my life, never going into this much detail. "This is where the story gets complicated, and unbelievable, but I assure you, it's the God's honest truth." I told them seriously, making sure they all understood. "As I saw this girls first day of school, I also saw five insanely beautiful people walking into the cafeteria. I'm sure most of you will know what I'm talking about, so I won't go into all that much detail, I just want you to understand that I saw everything in regards to this girl's live in my visions. I saw all the joy, and happiness she felt at finally being accepted into a family that treated her like a sibling or daughter, rather than having to be the parent with her mother and father." I closed my eyes, not wanting to look at anyone as I said the next part, knowing that it was going to cause a problem. "I also saw heartbreak, terror, fear, and excruciating pain." I whispered, hearing them all gasp, most of them knowing what I was talking about. "I saw it all, and I could do nothing to stop it. I wanted to, more than anything in the world, but I wouldn't have been able to do anything other than get myself killed. When I was old enough to leave my supposed family, I ran away. This is the part that gets hard as well, because what I'm going to tell you may seem like a lie, and you'll be angry and think I'm trying to trick you, but I'm not. I know that one of you is an empath, and he can tell you that I've spoke nothing but the truth since I began talking." I told them, causing them all to look at Jasper, who nodded his head, not taking his eyes off me.

"She's right, she's never once lied to us. She has withheld some information, but I'm guessing that she did that because it wasn't something to be told right this moment." He said, and I nodded at him.

"Exactly. Now, after I ran away from home, I tried making my way to where I knew this girl was at, because I saw she would need someone to help her through everything that she'd been with, but I wasn't able to make it very far before I ran into two people I sometimes wish I'd never met." I closed my eyes, wishing I didn't have to tell them this, but there was no other way about it. "I was on my way home from work one night when I felt like I was being followed, but every time I turned around I wouldn't ever see anyone. As I got closer to my apartment, I was accosted by two people that I'd figured long ago to be vampires. I had thought that they were animal drinkers, but when I saw them, they had gleaming red eyes and vicious smirks on their faces. I was automatically fearful, but resigned to my fate. I had seen a vision of it, but I also saw the other outcome, so I wasn't sure exactly which one would happen until it did. When they introduced themselves, I was dumbfounded, because I knew them from my visions of the girls life, but I didn't immediately connect the dots. They introduced themselves as Edward and Alice Cullen." I said, causing everyone to start yelling and shouting all at once. The only one who was silent was Bella, and she was staring at me still with a contemplative look on her face. She stood from the couch and walked towards me, stopping about three feet from me. No one had seen her get up and walk towards me, but as soon as she spoke they all shut up quickly.

"You're my little sister?" She asked softly, a hopeful spark in her eyes. I nodded slightly, not sure exactly what to expect, but I wasn't expecting her to throw herself at me and wrap her arms around me in a tight hug and start sobbing. I wrapped her in my arms gently, happy to be able to hold my big sister for the first time. I knew that if I had been able to cry tears, I would be sobbing just as hard as Bella was. I saw Peter and Jasper looking at us in wonder, and my coven was staring at me like I was a stranger.

Bella pulled back slightly, looking at me with wonder in her eyes. "I can't believe that you are my sister, I've always wanted a sister!" She said, nearly vibrating out of her skin. I could tell everyone in the room was looking at us, and I frankly didn't care at the moment. I was finally with my sister, and I wouldn't let anyone pull us apart again.

Unfortunately our little moment was broke up by the leader of the Cullen coven, "Are you telling me that Edward and Alice changed you, and that you are barely out of your newborn time?" He asked with an incredulous voice causing my coven, and my new found sister to tense up and glare at him.

I released Bella and turned towards him, "That's exactly what I am telling you. As I was changing, I heard them talking over me, talking about me being like another girl, but they never said names. They changed me, and because of my visions, I knew that they wanted to use me for something, so as soon as I woke up, I used my powers and trapped them against the wall and ran away. I've been running ever since, until I got the vision of Bella and the other two being in trouble." I told him bluntly, knowing good and well that he wouldn't believe me, but all the others would.

Bella turned towards the leader, giving him a glare that caused him to flinch. "If you think she's lying, why don't you look towards Jasper and find out. I'm sure he's been keeping an eye on her emotions." She turned towards Jasper, raising an eyebrow. I was astonished, here this human girl was, and she had all the vampires at her beck and call. It was a humbling feeling to know that my sister could command this many.

"She's not lying Carlisle, she's been nothing but truthful with us since she got her, and I'd suggest that you don't call her out to be a liar again." He growled the last part, making nearly all the vampires flinch back.

"I'm sorry Zarah, but it's a lot to take it right now to know that two of my family did this to you." He said, shaking his head. I knew that it would be hard for him to believe, but I never expected him to think me out to be a liar.

I shook my head sadly, turning towards my sister and her family, "Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to come here. I'm not sorry for saving you, but obviously your family and those around you are never going to believe me." I said, hugging her tightly to me before I began making my way out the door. I wouldn't go far, but I would leave just to give her family some time.

_**Peter POV:**_

Hearing Zarah talk to Bells, and what she was saying angered me. I wasn't going to let Carlisle and his 'holier-than-thou' attitude run my sister-in-law out just because he refused to believe that his precious Edward and Alice did this.

"Zarah, you don't have to go anywhere sweetheart, you are more than welcome to stay here with us, and if anyone has a problem with it, they can get the hell off my property. I'll not have anyone running you away from your family just because they don't want to believe you about something you said." I told her, glaring at everyone that I could tell wanted to protest my words.

She turned towards me, giving me a soft look and nodded. "Thank you Peter, I wasn't going to go far, but I was just going to leave to give everyone a chance to calm down and let what I told them sink in. I vowed never to leave me sister again once I got in touch with her, and I refuse to let anyone here dictate what I do with my life."

Bella beamed and ran towards me, throwing herself in my arms, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" I hugged her back, smiling. "You are welcome Darlin'." I said softly. "You know I'd do anything for you. No one should ever try and keep you away from your family."

She pulled back and turned towards Zarah, "Are you staying now?" She asked softly, with a tinge of fear in her voice.

Zarah gave her a smile in return, "Of course I'll stay. As I told Peter, I never intended to go far, not now that I've found you." She nodded and then turned to all the others in the room.

"Anyone got a problem with my sister and her family staying?" She asked them. I saw Caius shake his head and walk towards her with a soft smile of his own.

"Anyone that has a problem can leave, as Peter said. You are my family as well, making her family." He glared at anyone who dared to attempt to speak up against what we had all said.

"Hell yea! Baby Bells has more family that she knows what to do with now!" Emmett said, causing a few people to chuckle at him.

"I'm all for having more vamps around to help protect Bella and the rest of us. If she says that she's going to protect Bella, and that her visions are more set in stone, then I say let her stay. Bella needs all the family she can get because of what Alice and Edward had done to her." Rosalie said, causing Bella to look at her in wonder and shock. She knew that Rose and Em were going to try harder to be the family she needed, but she wasn't expecting Rose to speak out like that about total strangers.

A few of the others all nodded in agreement, and I saw them all move slightly to stand with Bella against those that had a problem with Zarah and her coven staying around. The ones that had the most problem were Carlisle and a few of the Volturi guard, but one look from Caius, Aro, and Marcus and the Volturi guard that opposed it all submitted and came to stand with us. Now it was only Carlisle left, and as he looked around at all the people against him, he hung his head in shame.

"I don't like it, because I just can't picture Edward and Alice changing her for some unknown reason. I always instilled in them that life was precious, and that it should only be done in life or death situations." He shook his head. "I'm not going to cause any problems." He said, looking up towards everyone, making sure they knew he wasn't going to be a problem.

Everyone nodded and went back to talking to Bella, Zarah, and her coven. Things were hopefully going to be looking up now that we had more people that would help us in this battle with Alice and her army. Now we had a better chance of winning this without losing anyone in the process.


	20. Chapter 20

**Sorry this has taken a bit to get out. Real life has just been horrible, and I know it's not really an excuse. You can all be assured that this story WILL be finished, but it might take a while. Thank you for all the reviews, alerts, and favorites. You all are the best! This wasn't the easiest chapter to write, and I will admit that I had to try it a few times before I got something that I felt even half-way comfortable posting, but I hope you all enjoy the chapter, and the new twist I added! (: **

**I own nothing! Enjoy.**

_**Bella POV:**_

Having the confrontation with everyone about Zarah was pissing me off. How dare they try and tell my sister and her coven that they couldn't stay here! This was Peter's house, and if he said that he was fine with them all staying, then everyone else should just get on board, and not try and say shit like that! I'm sick of Carlisle's attitude when it comes to Edward and Alice. Thank God Edward is dead, or I'm afraid that Carlisle would have run back to him with his tail between his leg. It's like Edward and Alice could never do any wrong, and Carlisle was neglecting his other family members because of them.

I turn towards Peter and Jasper, using my head I nodded outside, hoping to talk to them both about some things. I knew that we had too many vampires here and they would hear us, so I was hoping that they'd take me on a walk, away from everyone and we could talk.

Peter smiled and nodded, and we all made our way outside. He started to open his mouth, but I shook my head and motioned for them to keep walking. When we got far enough away and gave a soft sigh of relief.

"Thanks guys. I just needed to get away for a few minutes, and talk to you guys about something." I told them, plopping down on the ground.

I saw them throw each other a glance before they sat down with me. "What's on your mind Darlin'?" Peter asked, grabbing my hand gently.

"It's Carlisle. While I know he's sincere about being here, and wanting to help. I didn't like the way he was immediately willing to condemn Zarah and her coven. He refuses to believe her about what Edward and Alice have done, and it's got me thinking that maybe he doesn't believe me about what they did to me either." I said softly, refusing to look either of them in the eye.

I heard a sharp intake of breath, and felt a cold hand on my face bringing me to look at Jasper. "Isabella Marie Swan! How could you think that? You know he was heartbroken about what happened to you!" Jasper asked in shock.

I huffed, "Jasper, tell me honestly, he doesn't like my sister or her coven, and while he appeared heartbroken, are you absolutely sure that was what he was feeling?" I asked, needing to know the answer.

He furrowed his brow and sighed softly, "You're right. He doesn't care for Zarah or anyone in her coven. He finds them repulsive, and inhumane. And yes, he did feel heartbroken when he found out what happened to you, but at the same time he was unsure." He hung his head in shame.

"It's not your fault Jasper, you can't help what he feels, but I'm beginning to think that I don't want him around me alone anymore. I know he's been brainwashed like everyone else, but I just don't think I could trust him anymore. I mean for God's sake, Zarah is my sister and he wanted to throw her out because she didn't conform to his dietary standards." I scowled. I knew that Carlisle had problems with those that drank human blood, but I couldn't understand his insistence that animal blood was better. From everything I've witnessed myself, animal drinkers are more prone to slip-ups and control issues than those that drink from humans. I know being a human myself that I should be wary of those that feed on humans, but I couldn't fault them for their food source.

"You will never be alone with Carlisle as long as I'm around Baby." Peter vowed with a deep scowl on his face. I wrapped my arms around his waist, laying my head on his chest and sighing softly.

Jasper was deep in thought, and I was wondering what he was thinking about. "What's going through your head Jas?" I asked softly, still curled up against Peter.

He sighed softly, "Nothing much, just trying to think back to when you were hanging out with the family, and all the emotions that we felt while you were around. Emmett and Rose always felt love and happiness, but at the same time, I could tell they were angry and frustrated about something, but weren't telling me or anyone else what was going on. Edward, Alice, and Esme were all feeling like they were having problems being around you, but never truly felt anything of substance. Carlisle was the one that I'm having a problem remembering. It's like he would cut his emotions off completely when you were around. I'm not getting anything from my memories of you around back then. And now, it's like he's covering something up. While he was being truthful about being brainwashed, I think there is more to his story than what he's told us. Maybe it would be best to have Aro read him and see what he can tell us." He said, turning towards us with a thoughtful look.

I turned towards the mountains around our property and sighed softly. Part of me was hoping that what Carlisle told us was the truth, but a bigger part of me felt as if he left out a huge part of what he told us. Something that dealt more with what Alice, Edward, and Esme have done in the past. I had the sinking suspicion that he knew what they did to my sister, and that's why he wanted my sister and her coven out of the house, because he more than likely had a hand in it. I hope I wasn't right, but I always trusted my instincts, and they were screaming at me about whatever Carlisle was hiding, and I would be damned before I let any of the Cullen's mess with me or my family again.

_**Aro POV:**_

Hearing Carlisle adamantly protest against Zarah and her coven staying was raising a red flag in everyone's mind. It was like he was hiding something, and the way that Isabella, Peter, and Jasper left set me more on edge. That young lady has been hurt more than anyone, and the way that Carlisle was treating her sister wasn't something that he should have been doing. He should have been happy about Isabella finding out she had a sister out there, and he should have been angry at Edward and Alice for taking away her human life for their own personal pleasure. I knew that Isabella would want me to read his memories, and I would gladly have Jane or Alec use their gifts on him to be able to read him if he resisted.

I turned towards the front door as I heard Isabella's heartbeat walking back towards the house, waiting on her to come inside. It was like everyone was anticipating her arrival in the house; everyone was turned towards the door with the exception of Carlisle. I looked towards Marcus, who was standing off to my right and raised an eyebrow at him, silently asking him about Carlisle's lines, and Marcus lightly touched my hand, giving me his glimpse at the lines Carlisle had, and what I saw shocked me. He had no lines to anyone in this house, and I knew immediately that he wouldn't be allowed to live much longer. It was like he was sent to spy on us from Esme or Alice. Although he hasn't been alone since he got here, I'm trying to figure out how he would spy on us without alerting the other two of his coven what was going on. We'd all been together while hunting, but there could have been a time when he was alone enough to send them a text. If that was the case, then our plans of deceiving Alice were no longer valid, and we'd have to come up with another ploy.

As soon as I thought that, Carlisle turned towards me, and the look in his eyes was one of utter contempt, that I'm sure he didn't want me to see, because he immediately covered it with a different emotion that I couldn't name. I turned towards Alec and gave him a slight nod of my head, telling him that I wanted him to cut Carlisle's senses off, I was going to get to the bottom of this fiasco one way or another, and I realized that it would have to be done like this. I hated that it had to come to this, but I wasn't going to let anyone hurt Isabella any longer, and the quicker that we got this finished, the quicker that Isabella and her family would be able to finally live in peace. She may have been Caius' however many great's niece, but I felt as if she was my family as well, and I wouldn't let anyone hurt her any longer.

As soon as Alec told me that his senses were cut off, I walked over to Carlisle and touched him with one finger, getting every memory that he's ever had, and to say I was shocked was an understatement. He was in on the whole thing in regards to Isabella, and what went on in Forks. Carlisle is the one that had the order to have her father killed, and told Alice that it would bring Isabella into the open, but he wasn't counting on her having new friends and family standing behind her. That's why he was made to come here, to try and get close to her, and take her out that way, even if it ended up him getting killed himself. He was a sacrificial lamb in this game, and neither Esme or Alice gave a damn about him.

I removed my finger from him, sighing softly and turned towards the door where Isabella had walked through moments ago. The look on my face must have said it all because I heard just about every vampire in the room growl, but I was most worried about Isabella. She had the most heartbroken look on her face, and her shoulders slumped. Peter walked up behind her and wrapped her in his arms. She looked me dead in the eyes and asked the one question everyone was wondering.

"Why is he here if he doesn't care?" She asked, leaning back into Peter's chest. Everyone turned towards me, waiting on the answer.

I sighed softly, not wanting to answer, but I knew that I would have to. "He was in on it all. The only reason he is here is because they were thinking that with the death of your father, that you'd be more out in the open and they could get to you that way, and when it didn't happen, they sent him here to get you alone and kill you, no matter if it cost him his life as well. They don't care about anything except your death." I told her straight, knowing that if I didn't that it would be worse for everyone involved.

I saw the color drain from Isabella's face, and her eyes darken, "Are you telling me that he was the reason my father was killed, and he's here because he is supposed to kill me?" She asked without any emotion in her voice. I nodded my head, waiting on the blow up she was more than likely going to have. I saw Jasper wince slightly, but he covered it up quickly. "Was he aware of Zarah, and what she was to me?" She wanted to know.

"From what I can tell, he wasn't aware of what she was to you, but he did know about what Edward and Alice did to her, and he agreed, because she's silent to both Edward and Alice's gifts, same as you were. They thought that if they had her on their side, that they would be able to counter your gifts." I told her, turning away from her in shame. I should have read him when he got here instead of letting it go till now, or I should have known that Carlisle was part of it all when I read Edward before killing him. I didn't even hear her moving until I felt her arms around my waist.

"It's alright Aro, I know you feel like it's partially your fault, but you didn't know about what they were up to. Even though you read Edward, you couldn't have possibly known that Carlisle was in on it all, and you never would have known that Carlisle had any part in my father's death. None of this is your fault, and I won't have my family blaming themselves for things that weren't in their control." She told me, as if she had been reading my mind. I wrapped her in my arms, breathing in her calming scent and sighed softly.

"You're right Cara, but I'm still upset because I should have known something more was going on than what I read from Edward, and I should have read Carlisle when he got here instead of just believing him right from the start." Before I knew it, I felt a smack to the back of my head and turned to see Jasper behind me with a scowl and his arms now crossed over his chest.

I blinked at him, wondering why the hell he smacked me, "I smacked you because you forget what I can do. I am an Empath, and yet he was able to fool me as well. While you could read every memory a person has had, I should have known something was wrong with his emotions, and yet he was able to fool me. This isn't your fault, and it's not my fault, it's all on Alice, Esme, Edward, and Carlisle." He said, ending in a soft voice.

I looked around at all those gathered around us in the room, and saw them all nodding at me. Looking down at Isabella still in my arms, she looked up and nodded as well. "He's right Aro, this isn't your fault, it's no one's fault here. It's all on them, so please let this go." She told me, squeezing me around the waist, hoping that I would believe her.

I looked all around us, and saw that everyone was in agreement with Isabella and Jasper, and I realized at that moment that no matter what Carlisle or the others had done, we'd always be able to come together and be a family.

_**Peter POV:**_

After hearing what Aro said about Carlisle, I wanted to rip the mother fucker apart. There wasn't any way I was going to let him anywhere near my girl just for him to kill her. Knowing that he was in on it all just made me even angrier. Not once had we ever assumed that compassionate Carlisle Cullen would be in on something so sinister as to kill a human for anything. We all thought that he was the advocate for human life, and yet here he was wanting to kill one.

"If he was aware of it all, and was in on the whole thing, how was Edward able to hide it from you?" I asked Aro, more than likely voicing the thoughts that everyone was thinking.

They all turned to look at him, but he shrugged his shoulders, "I'm not certain how they were able to hide that detail from me, unless it's part of Esme's gift." Everyone could tell that he was angry at himself for not being able to know the things that were going on.

I walked towards him, "Don't feel bad about it all again, we've all told you that it wasn't your fault, that it was their fault. You just said it yourself that it was more than likely Esme's gift that prevented you from knowing about it through Edward's mind, and we're all going to stick with that. Now that we know the truth, we can go from there. Did you see if he was ever alone to contact Alice or Esme?" I asked, hoping and praying that he wouldn't have ever had the chance.

Aro shook his head, "He was never really alone long enough to call anyone or text them without anyone else seeing or hearing what he was doing. So we're safe in that aspect, but I did see that Alice told him before he left that she had an even bigger army than what we've been made aware of." He sighed softly. "We're going to have to work harder to defeat this army, even with all our allies we have here, we're going to need more, and a better defense against them."

I nodded, and began thinking about what he just told me. I turned towards Jasper and gave a slight nod towards him, letting him know that we're going to have to do things kind of like we did in the Southern Armies. He nodded back, and I could see his back straighten, and the feared Major start to come to the surface. I knew he wouldn't let anything happen to Bella, or anyone else around here, and I was thankful that he was on my side. I wouldn't want to face my own brother on the battlefield, and I sure as hell was glad that I had him helping to protect my mate. I knew this was going to be a hard battle, and that we'd more than likely lose people on our side, but as long as it wasn't that many or anyone that was in our family, I wasn't going to let it bother me. I just hope that we have time enough to prepare and get all our allies here that we're going to need.

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><p><strong>I'm sorry for such a long time between chapters, life is crazy, and my muse just keeps leaving me when it comes to writing lately. Just know that I'll NEVER abandon my story, and that it will get finished, it just might take me a while to finish it. I hope you all enjoy it, and bear with me while I try and finish it.<strong>


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